Concurrent Retirement and Disability Pay (CRDP) allows qualifying military retirees to receive both their full military retirement pay and their full VA disability compensation without offset. Before CRDP, retirees had to waive a dollar of retirement pay for every dollar of VA disability compensation they received. CRDP eliminated this offset for eligible veterans. To qualify for CRDP, you must be a military retiree with 20 or more years of service (including reserve retirement at age 60) and have a combined VA disability rating of 50 percent or higher. If you meet these criteria, CRDP is applied automatically. You do not need to file a separate application. Your retirement pay is restored to its full amount and you continue to receive your full VA compensation. Veterans who are medically retired with less than 20 years of service and a VA rating below 50 percent are not eligible for CRDP. However, they may be eligible for Combat-Related Special Compensation (CRSC) if their disabilities are combat-related. CRSC has different eligibility criteria and can be applied for separately. Some veterans may be eligible for both CRDP and CRSC but can only receive one. The Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) will generally apply whichever provides the higher amount.
Note: This article references sections of the VA's M21-1 Adjudication Procedures Manual. The VA periodically reorganizes the M21-1 and section numbers may have changed since this article was written. For the most current section references, visit the VA's public M21-1 Web Automated Reference Material System (WARMS).