Mental Health Claims: PTSD, Depression and What DVA Actually Needs

Mental health is the largest single area of DVA claiming, and the one where the gap between what veterans experience and what the paperwork shows is widest.

Part of that is the nature of the injury. Part of it is that these claims are frequently lodged with a GP letter describing distress rather than a diagnosis a delegate can act on.

Start with treatment, not the claim

One thing worth knowing before anything else: DVA funds treatment for mental health conditions without needing to accept them as service related. Non-liability health care covers this, and you do not have to wait for a claim outcome, or lodge a claim at all, to use it.

If you are struggling now, that is the fastest door. The claim can follow.

What a proper diagnosis looks like

DVA needs a named condition, diagnosed against DSM-5 criteria by an appropriately qualified practitioner — post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, an anxiety disorder, alcohol use disorder. "Stress", "low mood" and "not coping" are symptoms, and symptoms cannot be assessed against a Statement of Principles.

Comorbidity is the norm rather than the exception. PTSD frequently travels with depression, an anxiety disorder and alcohol use, and each of those is separately claimable. Claiming one condition where four are present is one of the most costly simplifications a veteran can make.

Documenting the stressors

The Statements of Principles for mental health conditions turn on specified stressors and experiences, and the evidence has to connect your history to them concretely: what happened, when, where, and what your role was.

This is the part veterans find hardest, and understandably so. It does not require reliving everything in detail on paper — it requires the events being recorded accurately enough to engage the factor. A good report does that work carefully and without sensationalism.

Impairment, when the time comes

Once liability is accepted, psychiatric impairment is rated under GARP like any other condition, based on how the condition affects function — relationships, work, daily activity, self-care. It is rated by clinicians who do it regularly, because the scoring is not intuitive and an inexperienced assessor tends to under-rate it substantially.

See Permanent Impairment Assessments for how that process works.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a psychiatrist's report to claim?

Not always. What is needed is a properly reasoned DSM-5 diagnosis from an appropriately qualified practitioner, with the stressors documented against the Statement of Principles.

Will claiming affect my current employment or security clearance?

A DVA claim is a claim for compensation and treatment. Concerns about disclosure are common and worth discussing directly with us or your advocate rather than left as a reason not to seek help.

Can I claim alcohol use disorder?

Yes. It has its own Statement of Principles, and it frequently arises as a sequela of an accepted mental health condition.

I was refused years ago. Should I try again?

Often, yes — particularly if the original claim was lodged without a formal diagnosis. See appeals for how a refusal is answered.

Where do I get help right now?

Open Arms — Veterans & Families Counselling provides free, confidential counselling on 1800 011 046, 24 hours a day. If you are in immediate danger, call 000.

Talk to us

If you want to know where you stand before spending anything, call 0429 146 039 or email reception@vhc.org.au for a no-obligation consult with the Veterans Health Centre in Ipswich, Queensland.

This article is general information for Australian veterans and is not legal or financial advice. Your entitlements depend on your service, your conditions and the evidence available.