The fees for medical assessments and reports required to support a veteran’s compensation claim have been updated from 9 February 2026.
The Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) often pays for medical assessments and reports that have been requested to support investigation of a veterans’ eligibility for benefits (claim assessment). The fees have been updated so that rates are more consistent with comparable fees in other jurisdictions. This is a substantial increase in the fees payable for these reports since the last official update. The fees will also be indexed on 1 July each year.
DVA encourages health providers to familiarise themselves with and to comply with the updated fee guidance. In particular to observe that:
- Payments are not guaranteed for investigations, reports or extraneous information that have not been requested by the Department.
- Rates are payable per request not individually by condition.
- Above-rate fees will not be payable without prior written approval.
Requests for above-rate fees can be granted in exceptional circumstances, primarily for practitioners with unusual levels of advanced training and expertise or where circumstances may justify such as very complex and rare conditions requiring extensive investigation. DVA is consulting with the Australian Medical Association about when above rate fees may be appropriate. Requests for above-rate fees should be made to compensation.trn.prior.approval@dva.gov.au or by completing form D9551, prior to providing the services.
The updated fees are available on the DVA website at: www.dva.gov.au/providers/fees-claims/fee-notes-gps-and-specialists
Alongside the release of the updated fee guidance active monitoring of invoices has increased. If a provider fails to comply with their obligations it may result in
- delays to payment while invoices are reviewed,
- refusal to pay for reports, information or investigations that have not been requested by DVA or that are invoiced per condition rather than per request,
- refusal to pay for reports that are above the guidance amounts without prior approval from DVA,
- providers being placed on hold – meaning invoices from the practitioner will not be processed while an investigation into billing practices is ongoing,
- where repeated inappropriate billing practices are identified DVA may refuse to issue Transaction Reference Numbers (TRNs) to, or accept and pay for any reports from, the relevant practitioner or practice.
In addition to the measures above, medical providers receiving financial benefits from non-disclosed links to corporate structures may be referred to the Australian Health Practitioner Regulation Agency (Ahpra).
Modification of medical forms and reports may also be treated as fraud and referred to both Ahpra and law enforcement agencies as relevant. This includes where a practitioner has provided a report that is drafted or completed by an advocate/advocacy group or where a practitioner has provided a report that is then modified or adjusted by an advocate or advocacy group prior to receipt by DVA.
These updates are part of DVA’s work to safeguard the integrity of the veteran support system to make it easier for veterans and families to access fair, transparent, and accountable care and compensation that supports their wellbeing.
DVA acknowledges and appreciates the important role played by health providers in the assessment of claims from veterans. These new compliance measures are not expected to affect most providers who bill appropriately.
Further information
- DVA offer a number of handy quick tips on compensation claims
- VETsHeLP is an eLearning platform for health professionals providing access to CPD accredited education resources
- For more education, and resources to support providers to support veterans and their families, visit For providers