Easy VA ClaimsVA Claim Denied or Rated Too Low? Here Is How to Fight Back.
A VA denial is not the end. Under the Appeals Modernization Act (AMA), you have three lanes to appeal — and choosing the right one can mean the difference between winning in 4 months or waiting 2 years.
Start My Free Claim Review →A Denial Is Not What You Think It Is
The vast majority of veterans who receive a VA denial take it literally — as a final answer. They give up. They walk away from benefits they earned. And that is the single most costly mistake a veteran can make in this process.
Jordan Anderson
Founder, EasyVAClaims · 100% P&T Veteran
“It's like tinkering on a car. When you're filing a claim, you're inserting the key and turning it. Sometimes the engine doesn't turn over. All that is, is a signal that you need to pop the hood again. It might just be one small screw that's out of place. Most of the time, the fix is comically simple. What I don't want veterans doing is towing their nice Porsche to the junkyard and scrapping the vehicle just because the engine didn't start on the first try.”
Jordan has troubleshot nearly 10,000 VA claims. His core message: a denial is feedback, not a death sentence. There is almost always a path to approval for almost every veteran.
The key is understanding why you were denied — and then choosing the right appeal lane to fix it. The three lanes under the AMA each serve a different purpose, and choosing the wrong one can waste months.
The 3 AMA Appeal Lanes
The Appeals Modernization Act (AMA), effective February 2019, replaced the old legacy appeals system with three distinct lanes. You must choose one — and you can switch lanes if your first appeal is unsuccessful.
Supplemental Claim Lane
AMA Lane 1Submit new and relevant evidence that was not previously considered. This is the most common first step after a denial. The VA must consider the new evidence and issue a new decision.
Best For
When you have new medical evidence, a new nexus letter, or buddy statements that were not in your original claim.
Avg. Timeline
4–5 months average
Higher-Level Review Lane
AMA Lane 2Request a review by a more senior VA claims adjudicator. No new evidence is submitted — the reviewer looks at the same record and determines if an error was made. You can request an informal conference to identify errors.
Best For
When you believe the VA made a clear error in applying the law or rating criteria to your existing evidence.
Avg. Timeline
4–5 months average
Board of Veterans Appeals
AMA Lane 3Appeal directly to a Veterans Law Judge at the BVA. Three sub-options: direct review (no new evidence), evidence submission, or a hearing with a judge. The BVA is independent of the regional VA office.
Best For
When you want a fresh look from an independent judge, especially for complex legal or medical issues.
Avg. Timeline
12–24+ months (hearing track is longest)
How to Choose the Right Lane
The decision comes down to one question: was your C&P exam favorable or unfavorable? If you do not know the answer, you need to find out before choosing a lane. Use the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to request your C&P exam results and review the DBQ the examiner filled out.
Jordan Anderson
Founder, EasyVAClaims · 100% P&T Veteran
“If you did everything right — good personal statement, good nexus letter, used Easy VA Claims — and the VA still denied you, then the mistake might be the VA rater or the C&P examiner gave you an unfavorable opinion. Pull your C&P exam results using FOIA. If the examiner gave you an unfavorable opinion, the rater just sided with them — because the rater just wants to cover their behind. A Higher-Level Review won't help because that unfavorable DBQ is still there poisoning the well. The new rater will see it and make the same decision.”
The Decision Tree
If your C&P exam was unfavorable → File a Supplemental Claim. This lets you add new evidence (a nexus letter, a personal statement, a buddy letter) and triggers a new C&P exam — flushing out the bad one.
If your evidence was strong but the rater made an error → File a Higher-Level Review. A senior adjudicator re-reviews the same evidence and can overturn the original decision.
Board of Veterans Appeals → Almost never needed. An estimated 99% of veterans can resolve their claim with a Supplemental Claim or Higher-Level Review.
Jordan Anderson
Founder, EasyVAClaims · 100% P&T Veteran
“Supplements make you stronger. Just like a scrawny high school kid who gets bullied, starts lifting weights and taking creatine, and three months later he's ready to confront that bully and win. Supplemental claims make your claims stronger.”
“Never quit on yourself. Never quit on your loved ones.”
— Jordan Anderson, Founder of EasyVAClaims
Was Your Claim Denied?
The free EasyVAClaims wizard helps you identify why your claim was denied, which appeal lane is right for your situation, and what evidence you need to win on appeal.
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