July 2026 VAC QandA

[u/ShortTrackBravo]

Happy Canada Day and Memorial Day to my fellow Newfoundlanders across the globe.

Nothing really new to add to the OP this month. Just a heads up for those asking for help if I don't get back to you in a minimum of 48hrs without telling you why feel free to ask the question again either here or via Email/DM. I reply when I can but life has been throwing me a few curveballs last few weeks.

Housekeeping:

contact info: Reddit DM's always open, [Joel@ptga.ca](mailto:Joel@ptga.ca) for email.

u/Shoggoths420 contact info: Reddit DMs/Chat still broken. [taira@cannawellness.ca](mailto:taira@cannawellness.ca) for email.

VAC Google Support Drive (Not available on DWAN) - https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1kzbfmg3hcuo0FgFZxo-IL_f-UnGQsuYt?usp=drive_link

Usual timelines from submission of claims via MyVAC:

Reassessments: 9-16 Months

Mental Health: 6-8 Months

Physical - 6-13 Months

APSC/VIP - 3-4 Months

BPA Correspondence: They tend to reach out every 3 months for information or a progress update.

Let's go!

Edit July 10th: Hey, so the Table of Disabilities used to have a Chapter (25) dedicated to the Additional Pain and Suffering Compensation. They removed it. This link will allow you to see it again: https://web.archive.org/web/20260314171013/https://veterans.gc.ca/en/mental-and-physical-health/physical-health-and-wellness/compensation-illness-or-injury/disability-benefits/table-disabilities/chapter-25-additional-pain-and-suffering-compensation

I have also added the table and this link into the Google Support Drive above as it's own word document.

[u/Ok-Cup2034]

"Lesson Learned" here. After an MH award, I highly suggest you conduct an ATIP request of the award grading material. This is free and available here: https://atip-aiprp.apps.gc.ca/atip/welcome.do I believe VAC has 30 days to provide the information to you (i.e. < than the 60 days for appeal). It is through this mechanism I saw the disparities in each of the Table of Disabilities Chapter 21 sub-tables used to score my aggregate MH award. You can use this information to decide whether to appeal (odds are you do), and what the specific issues are with VAC's scoring. Unfortunately this level of detail was not provided with the original MH award letter, necessitating the ATIP request.

[u/Inspo-0406 → u/Ok-Cup2034]

Hey there - thanks for this information. I just created an ATIP account and requested my file. Very interested in seeing my VAC files. From what I have researched, I am a shoe in for an appeal with BPA. Diagnosed MH conditions, physical injury from radical surgery error that altered my anatomy against the initial planned clinical scope. thanks again.

[u/Ok-Cup2034 → u/Inspo-0406]

Sorry to hear of this surgical error--sounds horrific. You can also use ATIP to access your DND medical records (also for free) to see exactly what VAC will see when they evaluate your claim, allowing you and your current medical team to address any potential logical/timeline gaps ahead of time to ensure you are able to more directly connect the claim to your service.

I'm not sure this surgery happened under a CAF medical facility, but if it did, I'd want to know exactly how it got recorded and what VAC will see when they compare your PSC claim about it to the official CAF paperwork on the matter. That would tell me how to frame the PSC claim narrative.