On this page
Cataracts are rated under DC 6027 in 38 CFR § 4.79 (opens in a new tab), and the code does not rate the cataract itself. It sends the rater to the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye, which rates the visual impairment the cataract causes or the clinic visits for treatment, whichever is higher. After surgery with a lens implant, the same formula applies. Only an eye left without a replacement lens is rated as aphakia under DC 6029, with a 30 percent minimum.
The harder question is service connection. In adults, the most common cataract is the age-related kind, and doctors rule out causes such as medication, other disease and eye trauma before calling a cataract age-related (PMID 32586638). A cataract claim succeeds when the record ties one of those other causes to service: an in-service eye injury, radiation exposure in service, or a service-connected condition such as diabetes, or the steroids used to treat one.
This page covers the rating criteria and chart, the rating after surgery, Agent Orange and radiation, cataracts secondary to diabetes and steroids, and why VA denies these claims.
TL;DR
- Cataracts are rated under DC 6027 through the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye: visual impairment or documented treatment visits, whichever is higher. A cataract that does not reduce corrected vision and needs no treatment visits rates 0 percent.
- Vision is rated on corrected distance vision. With 20/40 or better in both eyes, the acuity table gives 0 percent.
- After surgery with a lens implant (pseudophakia), the general formula still applies. An eye left without a replacement lens (aphakia) is rated under DC 6029, with a 30 percent minimum for one eye or both.
- Cataracts are not on the Agent Orange list in 38 CFR § 3.309(e). Type 2 diabetes is, and cataracts can be claimed secondary to service-connected diabetes.
- Posterior subcapsular cataracts are a listed radiogenic disease under 38 CFR § 3.311 for veterans exposed to ionizing radiation in service.
- A ruling is one issue the Board decided in one decision; one decision often rules on several issues. Across 1,779 decided Board rulings on cataracts from 2021 to 2026, 12.0% were granted, 33.6% denied and 54.5% remanded. The grant rate is 12.7 points below the Board-wide grant rate of 24.7%, and remand is the most common outcome.
Cataracts VA rating criteria (DC 6027)
The eye schedule has one code for every cataract, traumatic or not. It reads this way.
6027 Cataract:
Preoperative: Evaluate under the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye
Postoperative: If a replacement lens is present (pseudophakia), evaluate under the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye. If there is no replacement lens, evaluate based on aphakia (diagnostic code 6029)
The General Rating Formula takes whichever is higher: the visual impairment the cataract causes, or documented incapacitating episodes. An incapacitating episode is an eye condition severe enough to require a clinic visit to a provider specifically for treatment. One or two such visits in the past 12 months rate 10 percent, three or four rate 20 percent, five or six rate 40 percent, and seven or more rate 60 percent.
Older Board decisions cite DC 6028 for senile and other cataracts. The eye rules that took effect May 13, 2018 left one cataract code, DC 6027, so whether a cataract is traumatic now matters for service connection, not for the rating.
Cataracts VA rating chart for visual acuity
Under 38 CFR § 4.76 (opens in a new tab), VA rates central visual acuity on corrected distance vision, so a cataract that glasses or a lens implant corrects to 20/40 rates 0 percent on acuity. Common levels from the acuity table in § 4.79 follow.
- 20/40 in both eyes: 0 percent.
- 20/50 in one eye and 20/40 in the other: 10 percent.
- 20/50 in both eyes: 10 percent.
- 20/200 in one eye and 20/40 in the other: 20 percent.
- 20/70 in both eyes: 30 percent.
- 20/100 in both eyes: 50 percent.
- 20/200 in both eyes: 70 percent.
- 5/200 in both eyes: 100 percent.
If only one eye is service connected, VA treats the other as 20/40, and one eye alone cannot rate above 30 percent for visual impairment unless the eye is lost (38 CFR § 4.75(c) and (d)). At the 2026 rates for a single veteran with no dependents, 10 percent pays $180.42 a month, 30 percent pays $552.47, 50 percent pays $1,132.90 and 70 percent pays $1,808.45. VA pays by your combined rating, so a cataract rating adds money only when it changes the combined percentage.
Cataract surgery and the 30 percent aphakia minimum
When cataract surgery puts in a replacement lens (pseudophakia), the eye is rated under the general formula on the corrected vision after surgery, so a good surgical result can bring the acuity rating to 0 percent even when vision before surgery was much worse.
An eye left without a replacement lens is rated under DC 6029, which reads this way.
6029 Aphakia or dislocation of crystalline lens:
Evaluate based on visual impairment, and elevate the resulting level of visual impairment one step.
Minimum (unilateral or bilateral), 30%
The 30 percent floor applies to one eye or both, even when corrected vision is otherwise good. It does not apply to an eye with a lens implant.
Cataracts, Agent Orange and radiation exposure
Cataracts are not on the Agent Orange list in 38 CFR § 3.309(e) (opens in a new tab), so VA does not presume that herbicide exposure caused them. They are also not on the burn pit (particulate matter) list in § 3.320 or the Camp Lejeune list in § 3.309(f). Type 2 diabetes is on the Agent Orange list, though, and a cataract can be claimed secondary to diabetes that is service connected through herbicide exposure (see the next section).
Radiation is the one listed lane. Under 38 CFR § 3.311 (opens in a new tab), posterior subcapsular cataracts, a type that forms at the back of the lens, are a radiogenic disease, and they must have appeared 6 months or more after the exposure. The rule covers participation in atmospheric nuclear testing, the occupation of Hiroshima or Nagasaki from September 1945 until July 1946, and other exposures as claimed. It is not a presumption. VA first gets a dose estimate (from the Department of Defense for testing and occupation claims, and through VA's Under Secretary for Health for other exposures), then refers the claim to the Under Secretary for Benefits, who reviews whether it is at least as likely as not that the cataract resulted from the radiation. Other cataract types, such as nuclear and cortical cataracts, are not on the list.
How to prove cataracts are service connected
A cataract claim needs a current diagnosis, something in service, and a medical opinion that explains why that, rather than age, caused the cataract.
Eye injury in service
Cataracts can be caused by eye trauma (PMID 32586638). Service treatment records that document the injury, such as a blast, a penetrating injury or a blow to the eye, are the core of a direct claim. The opinion then has to say whether the current cataract is the traumatic kind, or whether age explains it.
Cataracts secondary to diabetes
Cataract has been associated with diabetes in the medical literature (PMID 33426783). That is an association, not proof for any one veteran. Under 38 CFR § 3.310 (opens in a new tab), a cataract caused by service-connected diabetes is service connected, and so is one aggravated by it, meaning it would be less severe but for the diabetes (Allen v. Brown, 7 Vet. App. 439 (1995)). The opinion has to address your own eye records and the age explanation: in a March 2025 decision, the Board denied a cataract claim despite service-connected diabetes after VA examiners attributed the veteran's nuclear sclerotic cataracts to aging and found no causation or aggravation by the diabetes (Board citation 25003005). Cataracts claimed secondary to diabetes is the publishable pair for this condition in the Board data, and the Board section below lists it with its count and grant rate. Secondary conditions to diabetes lists the other conditions veterans claim from diabetes.
Cataracts secondary to steroid treatment
Prolonged use of glucocorticoid (corticosteroid) medication is a significant risk factor for posterior subcapsular cataract (PMID 11952401). If you take long-term steroids for a service-connected condition, the cataract can be claimed secondary to that treatment. The claim should include the treatment records showing the drug, the dose and how long you took it, an eye record that names the cataract type, and an opinion that connects the steroid use to the cataract. In the Board's 2021 to 2026 service connection rulings, secondary cataract claims were granted more often than direct ones, though both were granted rarely; the Board section below shows both rates.
Why VA denies cataract claims
Across 1,779 decided Board rulings on cataracts from 2021 to 2026, 12.0% were granted, 33.6% denied and 54.5% remanded. The grant rate is 12.7 points below the Board-wide 24.7%, and remand is the most common outcome by a wide margin. When the Board denied service connection, it almost always found no link between the cataract and service. When it sent claims back, the most common reason was a VA exam or opinion that was not adequate. Among the medical opinions the Board relied on, opinions against the claim far outnumbered favorable ones. The Board section below shows how often each part of the claim failed, why claims were sent back, what happened after a remand, how service connection and higher-rating appeals compared, and what the Board did with medical opinions. The same gaps repeat in the decisions.
The age explanation goes unanswered. In the 2025 denials I reviewed, the medical opinions usually pointed to aging; in a January 2025 decision, the Board pointed to a private eye doctor's note stressing that the veteran's cataract was "an age-related process" (Board citation 25000687). An opinion that says the cataract is "at least as likely as not related to service" without explaining why age does not account for it rarely carries a claim.
No documented cause in service. Without an eye injury in the service records, documented radiation exposure, or a service-connected condition or treatment that explains the cataract, there is nothing for the opinion to connect.
Cataract type not recorded. The steroid and radiation theories both depend on a posterior subcapsular cataract. If the eye records never say which type you have, those theories are hard to prove.
The secondary chain is never raised. A veteran with service-connected diabetes, or years of steroids for a service-connected condition, files the cataract as a direct claim and never asks for a secondary opinion.
Aphakia missed. If the record does not say whether a replacement lens was put in, the 30 percent aphakia minimum can be missed for an eye left without one.
Questions veterans ask about cataracts
What is the VA rating for cataracts?
Cataracts are rated under DC 6027 on visual impairment or treatment visits, whichever is higher, from 0 up to 100 percent for vision loss in both eyes. An eye left without a replacement lens after surgery rates at least 30 percent.
Does Agent Orange cause cataracts?
Cataracts are not on the Agent Orange presumptive list in 38 CFR § 3.309(e), so VA does not presume a link to herbicide exposure. Type 2 diabetes is on that list, and a cataract can be claimed secondary to diabetes that is service connected through herbicide exposure.
What is the VA rating after cataract surgery?
With a lens implant, the eye is rated on the corrected vision after surgery, so 20/40 or better in both eyes rates 0 percent on acuity. Without a replacement lens, DC 6029 sets a 30 percent minimum.
Can cataracts be secondary to diabetes?
Yes, if a medical opinion explains how your service-connected diabetes caused or worsened the cataract. Diabetes is linked to cataract in studies, but the opinion still has to address your own records and the age explanation.
Can cataracts be service connected for radiation exposure?
Yes, for posterior subcapsular cataracts, which 38 CFR § 3.311 lists as a radiogenic disease when they appear 6 months or more after exposure. It is not a presumption: VA gets a dose estimate and decides whether the cataract is at least as likely as not from the radiation.
Bottom Line
Cataracts are rated under DC 6027 through the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye, on visual impairment or treatment visits rather than on the cataract itself. Surgery with a lens implant usually brings the acuity rating down, while an eye left without a replacement lens keeps a 30 percent minimum under DC 6029. The harder step is service connection, because most cataracts are age-related. Claims that succeed tie the cataract to something specific: an eye injury in service, radiation exposure with a posterior subcapsular cataract, or service-connected diabetes or steroid treatment, with an opinion that answers the age explanation directly.
Related Conditions
Cataracts share the § 4.79 eye framework with glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and dry eye. When the cataract is secondary to diabetes, the diabetic eye conditions are often best worked as a set, since the same diabetes record and eye exams support each claim.
Methodology and Limitations
- Data source: Rating criteria from 38 CFR § 4.79 (DC 6027, DC 6029, the General Rating Formula for Diseases of the Eye and the acuity table at DCs 6061 to 6066), with §§ 4.75 and 4.76, checked against the eCFR text current to October 2, 2026. The current eye criteria took effect May 13, 2018 (83 FR 15316). Presumptive lists from 38 CFR §§ 3.309(e), 3.309(f) and 3.320; radiogenic diseases from § 3.311; secondary service connection from § 3.310, with aggravation under Allen v. Brown. Board examples are 2025 decisions 25000687 and 25003005. Medical background from PubMed abstracts (PMIDs 32586638, 33426783 and 11952401).
- Sample size: Board figures in this post come from Claim Raven's read of every Board decision from 2021 to 2026 that it holds: 511,036 decisions containing 1,378,030 rulings. Of 1,881 Board rulings on cataracts, 1,779 were decided (granted, denied or remanded); the rest were dismissed, withdrawn or closed another way. Across 1,779 decided Board rulings on cataracts from 2021 to 2026, 12.0% were granted, 33.6% denied and 54.5% remanded. Board-wide, the grant rate on decided rulings is 24.7%. The Board section on this page breaks these down by denial reason, remand reason, results after a remand, appeal type, medical opinion, claim theory, era and secondary pair; those figures are computed from the data, not typed here. The data does not record rating levels, so the figures do not show how often a given acuity level was assigned.
- Limitations:
- The dataset captures BVA-level decisions. Cataract claims granted at the regional office without appeal are not in the sample.
- The radiation pathway under § 3.311 applies only to posterior subcapsular cataracts, and some eye records do not clearly name the cataract type.
- Medical studies cited here show associations, not proof that diabetes or a drug caused a particular veteran's cataract.
- Compensation amounts reflect the 2026 rates for a single veteran with no dependents and change annually with COLA.
- These observations describe BVA patterns and are not predictions of individual outcomes. Claim Raven is data analysis, not legal, medical, or VA-accredited advice. If you need help with a cataract claim, work with an accredited representative.