What can I claim secondary to hashimoto thyroiditis?
5 conditions in the Repatriation Medical Authority's Statements of Principles list hashimoto thyroiditis as a factor. If DVA has accepted your hashimoto thyroiditis, each of these has a documented pathway to a further claim.
At a glance
- Accepted conditionHashimoto thyroiditis
- Conditions it may open5
- SourceRMA SoPs
- Chart Review$600 + GST
How a secondary claim works
Some Statement of Principles factors are not about service at all — they name another condition. Where DVA has already accepted your hashimoto thyroiditis, and another condition's SoP lists hashimoto thyroiditis as a factor, that part of the next claim is already established on your file. How a secondary claim works, in full →
Conditions that list hashimoto thyroiditis as a factor
Quoted from the instrument. A pathway existing is not the same as a claim succeeding — each factor carries thresholds your record has to satisfy.
Carpal tunnel syndrome
RH No. 93 of 2021 · BoP No. 94 of 2021
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (7): “having hypothyroidism or Hashimoto thyroiditis at the time of the clinical onset of carpal tunnel syndrome” [clinical onset] — factor (24): “having hypothyroidism or Hashimoto thyroiditis at the time of the clinical worsening of carpal tunnel syndrome” [worsening]
This factor appears in the Reasonable Hypothesis instrument only, which applies to operational service.
Ischaemic heart disease
RH No. 27 of 2025 · BoP No. 28 of 2025
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (16): “having Hashimoto thyroiditis for at least 2 years within the 10 years before clinical onset or clinical worsening” [onset and worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (11): “having Hashimoto thyroiditis for at least 2 years within the 10 years before clinical onset or clinical worsening” [onset and worsening]
Meniere disease and meniere syndrome
RH No. 68 of 2024 · BoP No. 69 of 2024
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (3): “having any of the following autoimmune diseases before clinical onset; (a) ankylosing spondylitis; (b) Hashimoto thyroiditis; (c) rheumatoid arthritis; (d) systemic lupus erythematosus; (e) Cogan syndrome; (f) Susac syndrome; (g) Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome; or (h) psoriatic arthritis” [clinical onset]
This factor appears in the Reasonable Hypothesis instrument only, which applies to operational service.
Morbid obesity
RH No. 43 of 2022 · BoP No. 44 of 2022
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (8): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, for at least the 3 months before the clinical onset of morbid obesity” [clinical onset] — factor (22): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, for at least the 3 months before the clinical worsening of morbid obesity” [worsening]
Balance of Probabilities — factor (8): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, for at least the 3 months before the clinical onset of morbid obesity” [clinical onset] — factor (21): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, for at least the 3 months before the clinical worsening of morbid obesity” [worsening]
Sick sinus syndrome
RH No. 66 of 2022 · BoP No. 67 of 2022
Balance of Probabilities — factor (13): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, at the time of the clinical onset of sick sinus syndrome” [clinical onset] — factor (31): “having hypothyroidism, including Hashimoto thyroiditis that has resulted in hypothyroidism, at the time of the clinical worsening of sick sinus syndrome” [worsening]
This condition has a Balance of Probabilities instrument only, so the same test applies whatever your service type.
Other accepted conditions that also open carpal tunnel syndrome
If any of these is also on your file, it reaches some of the same conditions hashimoto thyroiditis does.
What DVA means by hashimoto thyroiditis
A claim is tested against the definition first. If the diagnosis on your file does not meet this wording, the factors below never get reached — so it is worth checking that what your doctor wrote matches what the instrument requires.
Hashimoto thyroiditis, for the purposes of the Statement of Principles, for the purposes of this Statement of Principles, Hashimoto thyroiditis: (a) means a chronic, inflammatory, autoimmune disease of the thyroid gland characterised by varying degrees of lymphocytic infiltration and fibrosis of the thyroid gland, and typically presenting with a high titre of circulating antibodies against thyroid peroxidase (TPO) or thyroglobulin (Tg); and (b) includes: (i) goitrous thyroiditis; (ii) atrophic thyroiditis; and (iii) chronic autoimmune thyroiditis with transient thyrotoxicosis (Hashitoxicosis); and (c) excludes: (i) Graves disease; (ii) non-autoimmune chronic thyroiditis; (iii) postpartum thyroiditis; (iv) secondary hypothyroidism; and (v) subacute thyroiditis.
Aggravation-only factors. In this instrument, subsections 9(11) to 9(22) apply only to material contribution to, or aggravation of, hashimoto thyroiditis where it was already present before or during service. If service caused hashimoto thyroiditis outright, those factors are not available to you.
RH No. 1 of 2022 · BoP No. 2 of 2022 · 16 factors
What could support a claim for hashimoto thyroiditis?
The Statement of Principles for hashimoto thyroiditis names 2 other conditions among its own factors. If any of these is already accepted on your file, it may be the factor that carries a hashimoto thyroiditis claim — quoted here from the instrument.
Hepatitis C
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (5): “having infection with hepatitis C virus at the time of the clinical onset of Hashimoto thyroiditis” [clinical onset]
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (15): “having infection with hepatitis C virus at the time of the clinical worsening of Hashimoto thyroiditis” [worsening]
Posttraumatic stress disorder
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (9): “having posttraumatic stress disorder at the time of the clinical onset of Hashimoto thyroiditis” [clinical onset]
Reasonable Hypothesis — factor (19): “having posttraumatic stress disorder at the time of the clinical worsening of Hashimoto thyroiditis” [worsening]
Reviewed by Dr Thomas Perkins
Founding doctor, Veterans Health Centre · former RAAF aviation medical officer · 13 years working exclusively with ADF members and veterans. Full profile →
Hashimoto thyroiditis accepted?
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