An Intent to File (ITF) is a notice to the VA that you plan to file a disability claim. It is submitted on VA Form 21-0966 or can be made verbally to a VA representative, through VA.gov, or through a VSO. The ITF preserves the filing date as your potential effective date, giving you up to one year to gather evidence and submit the complete claim.
The ITF is one of the simplest but most valuable actions a veteran can take. It takes minutes to complete and costs nothing, but it can be worth months of retroactive compensation. If you are even considering filing a VA claim, submit an Intent to File immediately — there is no downside.
How it works: you submit the ITF today. You then have 365 days to submit the full claim (VA Form 21-526EZ) with supporting evidence. If the claim is ultimately granted, your effective date — and your back pay — starts from the ITF date, not the date you submitted the full claim.
Example: you submit an ITF on January 1. You spend six months gathering medical records, obtaining a nexus opinion, and preparing your claim. You submit the full claim on July 1. The VA processes the claim and issues a decision on December 1, granting a 30% rating. Your compensation is paid retroactively from January 1 — six months of back pay that you would have lost without the ITF.
The ITF expires after one year. If you do not submit a complete claim within that year, the ITF lapses and you would need to submit a new one. There is no penalty for letting an ITF expire.
You can have separate ITFs for different types of claims — compensation, pension, and survivors benefits. An ITF for compensation covers all disability conditions you include in the subsequent claim.
Every veteran who is considering filing a claim should submit an Intent to File first. It is one of the few actions in the VA system with absolutely no risk and potentially significant financial benefit.
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).