A replacement rate. Two ways to qualify.

SMC-S: Housebound Compensation

SMC-S, often called "Housebound benefits," is a Special Monthly Compensation tier paid to veterans who are substantially confined to home, or who have one 100%-rated disability plus additional 60%+ from separate disabilities. Authority: 38 USC § 1114(s), implemented at 38 CFR § 3.350(i).

Updated August 2026 A guide for Veterans and families

Compare the two paths Check your codesheet

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Two paths. Start with yours.

Read the complete guide

Shortcuts into the guide, not an eligibility decision. Both paths start from one service-connected disability rated 100%.

A stethoscope, exam gloves and medical instruments
Path A / Housebound in fact

Substantially confined

Confined to home or its immediate premises because of a permanent disability.

Read Path A
A navy records folder with military dog tags
Path B / Statutory

100% plus separate 60%

Other separately rated disabilities combining to 60% or more.

Read Path B
A calculator with a pencil and paper

Your codesheet
lists the ratings.

A tool on this page

Run the Codesheet Check.

Choose the path that matches your record and follow its steps on your own rating documents. Nothing is saved or sent.

01Schedular pathOne disability rated 100%, plus separate ratings.
02TDIU pathTDIU based on one disability, plus separate ratings.
03The datesThe qualifying periods must overlap.
Open the check How TDIU can satisfy the 100% rating

The complete reference

The details behind each path.

All of the guidance is here. Open a section when you need it.

01

What Is SMC-S?

A replacement rate, and where it sits on the ladder.

SMC-S is the lowest-tier "replacement" SMC rate, it pays more than schedular 100% but less than SMC-L. It targets veterans whose service-connected disabilities have either (a) substantially confined them to their home, or (b) compounded across multiple body systems to a degree that warrants extra compensation despite not requiring daily aid and attendance.

Unlike SMC-K (an add-on), SMC-S replaces the schedular rate with a higher monthly amount.

02

The Two Pathways

Two alternative routes that share one prerequisite.

A veteran qualifies for SMC-S by meeting either:

  1. Path A, Substantial confinement. A single service-connected disability rated 100% (schedular OR via TDIU on a single disability) AND substantial confinement to home or its immediate premises due to permanent disability.
  2. Path B, Statutory 60% rule. A single service-connected disability rated 100% AND additional service-connected disabilities, separately rated, with a combined rating of 60% or more independent of the 100% disability.

The two paths are alternative, meet either, qualify for SMC-S. Both share the same prerequisite: a single service-connected disability rated 100%. Confinement or a separate 60% never qualifies on its own without that single 100% rating. Most veterans qualify under Path B because the math is mechanical (no clinical confinement evidence required).

03

Path A: Substantially Confined

Confinement to home from a permanent disability.

"Substantially confined" under 38 CFR § 3.350(i)(2) means the veteran is unable to leave home except for medical appointments. Occasional trips outside the home (grocery store, family events) do not automatically disqualify, but the pattern must be confinement, not occasional outings with primary residence at home.

Confinement must be due to permanent disability. Temporary post-surgical confinement, even if severe, does not qualify.

The 100% rating must be from a single disability, not a combined rating that totals 100%. A veteran combined to 100% from multiple disabilities under § 4.25 does not qualify under Path A unless one of those disabilities is independently rated 100%.
04

Path B: 100% Disability + Separate 60%

One 100% disability plus separate ratings of 60% or more.

The mechanical pathway. Requirements under 38 CFR § 3.350(i)(1):

  • One service-connected disability rated 100% (schedular).
  • Additional service-connected disabilities separately rated, with a combined rating of 60% or more, separate and distinct from the 100% disability and involving different anatomical segments or bodily systems.

Example: a veteran has PTSD rated 100%, plus tinnitus 10%, hearing loss 30%, lumbar strain 20%, and right-knee strain 10%. Combined-without-PTSD rating = 10+30+20+10 combined under § 4.25 = roughly 56%. Does not meet 60%. Adds left-knee strain at 10%. New combined-without-PTSD = 60+. Now qualifies for SMC-S Path B.

Use the VA Math Calculator to model the combined "without 100% disability" calculation.

05

How TDIU Can Satisfy the 100% Rating for SMC-S

When TDIU based on one disability fills the 100% side.

For Path B, the "100% rating" can come from TDIU based on a single disability, per the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC) holding in Bradley v. Peake, 22 Vet. App. 280 (2008). If TDIU is granted because one service-connected disability prevents employment, that single disability is treated as 100% schedular for SMC-S purposes.

This is a major doctrine. Many TDIU veterans qualify for SMC-S without realizing it because they assume "TDIU = combined-100%" and don't see how it interacts with SMC.

Action item: if you have TDIU + additional service-connected disabilities at 60%+ combined separately from the TDIU disability, you may be entitled to SMC-S without filing anything new. VA is supposed to consider SMC eligibility automatically when granting TDIU, but routinely doesn't. File a claim explicitly.
06

Run the SMC-S Codesheet Check

Choose your path, then follow its steps on your own record.

Your codesheet lists the ratings. The TDIU rating decision explains why the VA granted unemployability. Use both documents for this check.

Which path matches your record?

Choose one. You will only see the instructions for that situation.

Not sure? The codesheet shows the ratings. The narrative rating decision explains why the VA granted TDIU.

What counts as separate for the additional 60%?

The additional ratings cannot reuse the disability satisfying the total requirement. They must be separate from that disability and involve a different anatomical segment or bodily system. Do not count the same manifestations twice.

A shared cause or secondary relationship does not automatically disqualify a disability. The question is whether the additional disability is separately rated, is not the total disability itself, and meets the separate-anatomy or bodily-system requirement without counting the same manifestations twice.

Passes the separation check
PTSD 100%
Heart disease 60%

PTSD involves mental health. Heart disease involves the cardiovascular system. The 60% heart rating is separate from the 100% PTSD rating and passes this part of the statutory SMC-S check.

Timing and the other statutory requirements still must be checked.

The math reaches 60%, but the separation rule fails
Anal fistula with fecal incontinence 100%
Obstructive sleep apnea 50%
Hemorrhoids 10%
  • 50% + 10%= 55%
  • 55% rounds to60%

Under the VA's combined-ratings method, 50% and 10% combine to 55%, which rounds to 60%. But the hemorrhoids involve the same anal or rectal anatomy and digestive system as the 100% anal fistula with fecal incontinence. Do not use the hemorrhoid rating toward the additional 60%. The separate sleep-apnea rating remains 50%, so the qualifying separate ratings do not reach 60%.

These are educational hypotheticals, not real claimants. They show individual parts of the statutory SMC-S check, not entitlement.

Check ratings in the VA Math Calculator

Positive and negative TDIU examples

TDIU based on one disability + a qualifying separate 60%
PTSD 70%PTSD alone causes TDIU
Back 40%
Migraines 30%

The back and migraines combine to 58%, which rounds to 60%. That satisfies the separate 60% side of SMC-S.

The back and migraine ratings involve bodily systems different from PTSD, so they can be evaluated as the additional separate ratings in this example.

But all three ratings combine like this:

  • 70% + 40%= 82%
  • 82% + 30%= 87%
  • 87% rounds to90% schedular rating

So the veteran is:

Schedularly rated at 90%
Paid at the 100% rate through TDIU
Potentially entitled to SMC-S because PTSD alone supports TDIU and the remaining disabilities independently combine to 60%

TDIU changes the payment rate, not the underlying combined percentage. Timing and the other statutory requirements still must be checked.

The math reaches 60%, but the separation rule fails
Anal fistula with fecal incontinence 60%This condition alone causes TDIU
Obstructive sleep apnea 50%
Hemorrhoids 10%
  • 50% + 10%= 55%
  • 55% rounds to60%

Under the VA's combined-ratings method, 50% and 10% combine to 55%, which rounds to 60%. But the hemorrhoids involve the same anal or rectal anatomy and digestive system as the anal fistula with fecal incontinence that caused TDIU. Do not use the hemorrhoid rating toward the additional 60%. The separate sleep-apnea rating remains 50%, so the qualifying separate ratings do not reach 60%.

These are educational hypotheticals, not real claimants and not binding decisions.

Check ratings in the VA Math Calculator
07

Illustrative Example

A fictional scenario to illustrate the guidance.

Fictional example, not a real claimant. Names and facts are invented to show how the criteria above could apply in a single case.

Frank D. is a Vietnam Navy veteran. He has service-connected PTSD rated 100% and a separately rated service-connected diabetes mellitus condition rated 60%. Frank can still drive himself to a doctor's appointment, so he does not need aid and attendance, but the combination of his single 100% rating plus an additional separately-rated 60% disability qualifies him for SMC-S, "statutory housebound" status, at approximately $4,409 per month under 38 CFR § 3.350(i)(1) (the 60%-rule provision; (i)(2) covers housebound-in-fact).

08

2026 Monthly Rate

The monthly amount compared with 100% and SMC-L.

SMC-S's 2026 monthly rate (single veteran, no dependents) is approximately $4,409/month, set by VA each December 1 alongside the COLA-adjusted compensation rates. About $470/month above schedular 100% ($3,938.58). Dependent supplements add modestly.

Comparison:

  • Schedular 100% (single, no dependents): $3,938.58
  • SMC-S (this level): ~$4,409
  • SMC-L: $4,900.83
09

Evidence That Wins

What each pathway needs in the record.

Evidence varies by pathway:

For Path A (Substantially Confined):

  • Treating physician statement explicitly addressing confinement-to-home due to permanent service-connected disability.
  • VA Form 21-2680 ("Examination for Housebound Status") completed by a physician.
  • Records of home-health services, home-based primary care visits.
  • Caregiver statements describing the confinement pattern.

For Path B (Statutory 60%):

  • VA's own rating decisions, the math is mechanical. A rating-codesheet review showing 100% + 60% combined separately is the entire evidence.
  • If TDIU is the basis under Bradley, the rating decision granting TDIU should specify the disability that prevents employment.
10

SMC-S vs SMC-L

Different triggers. Different rates.

SMC-S (Housebound)

Reg: § 3.350(i)

Trigger: 100%+confinement OR 100%+separate 60%.

Rate: ~$4,409/mo (single)

No A&A need required. Lower bar, lower rate.

SMC-L (Aid & Attendance)

Reg: § 3.350(b)

Trigger: regular A&A need, bedridden, both feet/hand+foot/blindness.

Rate: $4,900.83/mo (single)

Requires daily care need. Higher bar, higher rate.

If a veteran qualifies for both, SMC-L pays. VA awards the higher tier.

11

How to File

The form and what to attach for each path.
  1. File VA Form 21-526EZ identifying the SMC-S claim.
  2. Path A claims: attach a treating physician statement and/or VA Form 21-2680 documenting permanent confinement.
  3. Path B claims: reference your existing rating decisions. The math is mechanical, no new evidence needed unless your codesheet is unclear.
  4. TDIU-based claims: explicitly cite Bradley if you have TDIU + 60% separate. VA adjudicators often miss this without a citation (Bradley v. Peake, 2008).
12

Common Mistakes

Gaps that cost a veteran this benefit.
  • Combining ratings to get to 100%. Path B requires a 100% rating from a SINGLE disability, plus separate 60%+ from others. A combined 100% rating doesn't qualify.
  • Missing the Bradley application of TDIU. TDIU based on one disability counts as 100% schedular for SMC-S purposes. Many TDIU veterans qualify and don't know it.
  • Confusing SMC-S with SMC-L. Different rules, different rates. SMC-L is about aid and attendance. SMC-S is about confinement OR statutory math.
  • Conflating SMC-S "substantially confined" with bedridden status. SMC-S Path A doesn't require being in bed, just being substantially confined to home/premises.
  • Not adding SMC-K when also eligible. SMC-S replaces the rate. SMC-K stacks on top. If you qualify for both, claim both.

A different way to take it in

Four guides to keep close.

All 30 visual guides
Comparison of statutory housebound and housebound-in-fact routes for SMC-S.

Visual guide: SMC-S Housebound

The statutory and housebound-in-fact routes, side by side.

View full size
Board outcomes across 16,118 SMC-S appeals: overall grant rate, the statutory and housebound-in-fact pathway shares among classified grants, 5,547 effective-date appeals, and common denial themes.

Visual guide: SMC-S Board Pathway Comparison

The appealed record by pathway, with common denial themes.

View full size
Evidence guide for single-total disability, actual travel pattern, service-connected causation, and permanence.

Visual guide: Housebound-in-Fact Evidence

Single-total disability, travel pattern, causation and permanence.

View full size
Decision path for TDIU based on one disability and possible special monthly compensation at the housebound rate.

Visual guide: TDIU and SMC-S

TDIU based on one disability and the housebound rate.

View full size All 18 visual guides

The published Board record

What the appealed cases show.

Patterns to understand, not odds for your own claim.

Research documents and a chart

The live Board outcome figures for SMC-S appear here when they are available. They are also published on SMC Appeals Data, linked in the related guides below.

Read Board decisions on SMC-S

This page is educational and is not legal advice. For help applying SMC-S rules to a specific claim, work with a VA-accredited representative.