Bipolar VA Rating and Diagnostic Code 9432 Criteria

Detailed breakdown of each bipolar rating percentage

When a VA rating specialist reviews a claim under Diagnostic Code 9432, the adjudicator weighs both overall occupational and social impairment and the specific symptoms documented across your record. Under Mauerhan v. Principi, the symptoms listed in 38 CFR 4.130 are not an exhaustive checklist. You do not need every symptom in a percentage tier to qualify; rather, the rating specialist selects the tier that most closely matches your overall functional disruption.

0 percent and 10 percent disability ratings

• 0% noncompensable rating: Assigned when bipolar disorder is formally diagnosed under DSM-5 criteria, but symptoms do not interfere with work or social functioning and do not require continuous medication. A 0% rating pays no monthly compensation, but establishes service connection, qualifies you for no-cost VA mental health care, and lets you request an increased rating if symptoms worsen.
• 10% disability rating: Assigned when mild or transient mood symptoms decrease work efficiency and task performance only during periods of significant stress, or when symptoms are controlled by continuous daily medication. Effective 2025-12-01, a standalone 10% rating pays $180.42 per month for a veteran alone.

30 percent and 50 percent disability ratings

• 30% disability rating: Assigned when bipolar disorder produces an occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks, even though routine behavior, self-care, and conversation remain generally normal. Representative symptoms include depressed mood, anxiety, suspiciousness, chronic sleep impairment, panic attacks weekly or less often, and mild memory loss. A 30% rating pays $552.47 per month for a veteran alone and qualifies for dependent allowances.
• 50% disability rating: Assigned for occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity. Representative symptoms include disturbances of motivation and mood, impaired judgment, circumstantial, circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech, flattened affect, difficulty establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships, impairment of short- and long-term memory, difficulty understanding complex commands, or panic attacks more than once a week. A 50% rating pays $1,132.90 per month for a veteran alone, effective 2025-12-01.

70 percent and 100 percent disability ratings

• 70% disability rating: Assigned when bipolar disorder causes occupational and social impairment with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood. Representative symptoms include suicidal ideation (Bankhead v. Shulkin), impaired impulse control, speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant, near-continuous depression or panic affecting independent functioning, neglect of personal appearance and hygiene, difficulty adapting to stressful circumstances in a work or worklike setting, and inability to establish and maintain effective relationships. A 70% rating pays $1,808.45 per month for a veteran alone and meets the single-disability threshold for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) under 38 CFR 4.16(a).
• 100% disability rating: Assigned for total occupational and social impairment, completely precluding competitive employment and disrupting basic daily activities. Representative symptoms include gross impairment in thought processes or communication, persistent delusions or hallucinations, grossly inappropriate behavior, persistent danger of hurting yourself or others, intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including minimal personal hygiene), disorientation to time or place, or severe memory loss. A 100% rating pays $3,938.58 per month for a veteran alone, effective 2025-12-01.

Mandatory evaluation rules under 38 CFR 4.126, 4.125, and 4.14

Three companion regulations govern how the VA adjudicates bipolar claims:

• Longitudinal evaluation across remissions (38 CFR 4.126): Under 38 CFR 4.126(a), the VA must evaluate symptom frequency, severity, and duration, remission length, and adjustment capacity during remission across the entire record rather than relying solely on the exam day. Under 38 CFR 4.126(b), a rating cannot be assigned solely on social impairment.
• One rating when there are several mental disorders (38 CFR 4.130, 38 CFR 4.126, and 38 CFR 4.14): Because mental disorders from DC 9201 through 9440 share the same formula in 38 CFR 4.130 and 38 CFR 4.14 prohibits rating overlapping symptoms twice, the VA assigns only one combined mental health rating. Comorbid bipolar disorder, depression, PTSD, and anxiety are evaluated together under one percentage.
• DSM-5 verification and changes in diagnosis (38 CFR 4.125): Under 38 CFR 4.125(a), a mental disorder diagnosis must conform to the DSM-5. Under 38 CFR 4.125(b), if an in-service diagnosis of depression or adjustment disorder is updated to bipolar disorder after a manic or hypomanic episode is documented, the VA determines whether the updated diagnosis represents a progression or correction of an error in the prior diagnosis.

Establishing direct and secondary service connection for bipolar disorder

To receive a bipolar va rating, you must establish direct service connection under 38 CFR 3.303 or secondary service connection under 38 CFR 3.310.

Direct service connection (38 CFR 3.303)

Direct service connection requires: (1) a current DSM-5 diagnosis of bipolar disorder; (2) evidence of in-service mood symptoms, behavioral shifts, or treatment; and (3) a medical nexus opinion concluding it is at least as likely as not that your bipolar disorder began during or relates to military service (including progression of an in-service depressive or adjustment diagnosis under 38 CFR 4.125(b)). Unlike PTSD claims under 38 CFR 3.304(f), bipolar disorder does not require corroborating a stressor on VA Form 21-0781.

Secondary service connection (38 CFR 3.310)

Under 38 CFR 3.310(a) and (b), a disability proximately caused or permanently aggravated by an already service-connected condition may be service connected. Bipolar disorder may be claimed secondary to or aggravated by service-connected traumatic brain injury, chronic pain, or sleep disorders when supported by a medical nexus opinion.

Conversely, once bipolar disorder is service connected, its physiological effects or mood-stabilizing medications may support secondary claims under 38 CFR 3.310 for:

• Hypothyroidism (DC 7903) or renal conditions: Long-term lithium therapy may cause or aggravate thyroid dysfunction or kidney disease.
• Obstructive sleep apnea (DC 6847): Under VAOPGCPREC 1-2017, obesity may serve as an intermediate step if service-connected bipolar disorder and psychotropic medications cause weight gain that proximately causes or aggravates sleep apnea.
• Migraines (DC 8100), GERD (DC 7206), or IBS (DC 7319): Chronic autonomic stress and medication side effects may aggravate headaches or digestive disorders.
• Medication-induced sexual dysfunction: Psychotropic medications may cause erectile dysfunction (DC 7522) or female sexual arousal disorder (DC 7632), which may qualify for Special Monthly Compensation (SMC-K) under 38 CFR 3.350(a).

How the C&P exam and Mental Disorders DBQ measure bipolar disorder

During a Compensation and Pension (C&P) exam for bipolar disorder, a qualified examiner completes the Mental Disorders (Other Than PTSD and Eating Disorders) Disability Benefits Questionnaire (DBQ) (initial exams are conducted by a psychiatrist, a licensed doctorate-level psychologist, or a supervised psychiatry resident or psychology trainee; review exams may also be conducted by supervised LCSWs, nurse practitioners, clinical nurse specialists, or physician assistants), available on the VA Public DBQ portal.

The examiner records your DSM-5 diagnosis, pre-service and post-service history, a summary checkbox in the Occupational and Social Impairment section mirroring the 0% to 100% tiers in 38 CFR 4.130, and 31 symptom checkboxes (such as depressed mood, chronic sleep impairment, disturbances of motivation and mood, impaired judgment, circumstantial or illogical speech, impaired impulse control, neglect of personal hygiene, and suicidal ideation). Describe both your manic/hypomanic highs and depressive lows over time rather than only how you feel that day.

Status of the 2022 proposed rule and TDIU eligibility

On February 15, 2022, the VA published a proposed rule (87 FR 8498, RIN 2900-AQ82) proposing a five-domain functional model and a 10% minimum rating for mental disorders. Those proposed changes have not been finalized, and the current 38 CFR 4.130 formula applies until a final rule takes effect. Established ratings are protected against schedule-based reductions under 38 CFR 3.951(a).

If service-connected bipolar disorder prevents you from holding substantially gainful employment, you may qualify for Total Disability based on Individual Unemployability (TDIU) under 38 CFR 4.16(a), paid at the 100% rate ($3,938.58 per month for a veteran alone). Schedular TDIU requires one disability rated at 60% or higher (satisfied by a 70% bipolar rating alone), or two or more disabilities with one rated at 40% or higher (satisfied by a 50% bipolar rating) and a combined rating of 70% or higher, claimed via VA Form 21-8940.

Combining ratings and working with accredited representatives

When you hold ratings for both bipolar disorder and physical conditions, the VA combines them using the “whole person” formula in 38 CFR 4.25. Model your combined evaluation with the VA combined rating calculator and estimate retroactive pay with the VA back pay calculator.

If you need help preparing a claim or appeal, work only with a VA-accredited representative. Chartered Veterans Service Organizations (VSOs)—such as the DAV, VFW, and American Legion—provide representation completely free of charge, while VA-accredited claims agents and attorneys handle appeals under federal oversight. No representative can guarantee an outcome. Verify credentials through the VA Office of General Counsel Accreditation Search.