Claim Raven explanation
What this means
A person whose DIC claim was denied before a new or changed service-connection presumption may elect reevaluation when the earlier claim might have been decided differently under the new law.
This is not automatic reopening of every denied survivor claim. The claimant must be relevant to the new presumption and elect reevaluation. When the special post-August 10, 2022 effective-date rule does not apply, sections 3.114 and 3.400 govern.
How this helps your claim
VA does not begin this reevaluation under section 3.33 until the relevant claimant elects it on the prescribed form. For qualifying presumptions established or modified on or after August 10, 2022, a later grant can receive an effective date determined as if the presumption had existed when the original claim was filed.
What to check in your records
Match the earlier DIC denial, the new presumption’s effective date and covered condition or service, and the claimant’s prescribed reevaluation election.
- Keep the complete earlier DIC decision and original claim receipt date.
- Identify the specific statute, regulation, court decision, or settlement that created or changed the presumption.
- Save the prescribed election form, supporting service and medical records, and proof of VA receipt.
Connect the old denial to the new presumption
Quote the earlier decision’s reason for denial and explain what the new presumption changes. The connection should be factual, such as covered service and a listed cause of death, rather than a general reference to the PACT Act.
Keep the reevaluation election separate from a new unrelated survivor theory. This helps VA and the claimant see which effective-date rule is being invoked.
Will VA automatically reevaluate my old DIC denial?
No. The regulation requires the relevant claimant to elect reevaluation on the prescribed form, even though VA also has outreach duties.
Official regulatory text
38 CFR § 3.33
eCFR snapshot: 2026-09-17. Layout and spacing are adapted for reading. The full section and its tables are included below.
§ 3.33 Reevaluation of Claims for Dependency and Indemnity Compensation Involving Presumptions of Service Connection Following Enactment of Public Law 117-168.
(a) Purpose. This section states effective date and election rules based on amendments made under Public Law 117-168, which provides for the reevaluation of certain previously denied dependency and indemnity compensation (DIC) claims when a law establishes or modifies a presumption of service connection.
(b) Definitions. For purpose of this section:
(1) Law means any law, regulation, or Federal court decision or settlement establishing or modifying a presumption of service connection.
(2) Relevant claimant means an individual who submitted a claim for DIC to VA that was evaluated and denied by VA before the date on which such a provision of law went into effect and might have been evaluated differently had the establishment or modification of the service connection presumption been applicable to the claim.
(c) Election of review —
(1) General. VA will not reevaluate under this section any previously denied claim for DIC prior to election by the relevant claimant.
(2) Form of election. Reevaluation of a previously denied DIC claim must be at the election of the relevant claimant on a prescribed form pursuant to § 3.152(a).
(d) Effective date of award. If a relevant claimant is found entitled to DIC based on the establishment or modification of a presumption of service connection, the effective date of the award will be as follows:
(1) If VA denied a claim for DIC prior to a law defined under (b)(1) of this section that establishes or modifies a presumption of service connection on or after August 10, 2022 (the date of enactment of Pub. L. 117-168), the effective date of the award will be determined as if the establishment or modification of the presumption of service connection had been in effect on the date of the submission of the original claim.
(2) If the requirements of paragraph (d)(1) are not met, the effective date of the award shall be determined in accordance with §§ 3.114 and 3.400.
(e) Outreach and identification of relevant claimants.
(1) VA will conduct the following efforts to inform relevant claimants that they may elect to have a claim reevaluated in light of the establishment or modification of a presumption of service connection:
(i) Publish on the internet website of the Department a notice that such claimants may elect to have a claim so reevaluated;
(ii) Notify, in writing or by electronic means, veterans service organizations of the ability of such claimants to elect to have a claim so reevaluated; and
(iii) Notify each such claimant in the same manner that the Department last provided notice of a decision.
(Authority 38 U.S.C. 501, 1305)
[88 FR 82264, Nov. 24, 2023]
Related references
- 38 CFR § 3.152: How VA treats a claim for death benefits
- 38 CFR § 3.312: When a service-connected disability caused or contributed to death
- 38 USC § 1305: DIC reevaluation after a new service presumption
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