A well-trained veteran's service officer (VSO) is crucial for many veterans applying for benefits from the VA. State, County or Local Veterans Affairs Offices contact information for assistance is available at
If desired, an agent recognized by VA or a licensed lawyer who is either in private practice or a legal aid attorney can represent you. Agents and attorneys can charge you only for services that you get from them after the Board of Veterans' Appeals (BVA) gives you their final decision about your application. That means you can use an attorney during any stage of your application for benefits. However, the agent or attorney cannot charge you for services unless you are trying to resolve a dispute with VA after BVA has made a decision about your claim.
If you want to use a representative to help you with your application, contact the closest VA office at 1-800-827-1000. Many veterans’ group national service org’s are certified by the VA to provide assistance upon request. In a few states (such as Michigan) veterans groups are paid - rather than state employees - to help vets navigate the complex benefits application process at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
The 14 national service org’s that file the most disability claims are listed below.
Contact information for their VSO in your area is available at the phone numbers or web sites indicated.
According to a Knight Ridder survey these VA-accredited VSOs vary in training and oversight.
The below includes the survey results in the following five categories:
(1) Number of VA-accredited VSO's in parent organization
(2) Accreditation training required
(3) Accreditation test required
(4) Continuing education required
(5) Later testing required
American Ex-Prisoners of War
(817) 649-2979 www.axpow.org
(1) 531 (2) No minimum requirement; provides 8-10 hours voluntary training annually (3) No (4) No (5) No
American Legion
(1) 1,341 (2) Standards vary by local branch; offers 48 hours of optional training at national schools (3) No (4) One VSO per state must attend national training twice yearly (5) No
AMVETS
(301) 459-9600 www.amvets.org
(1) 456 (2) 40 hrs one-on-one training for new VSOs (3)Yes (4) Yes - 26 hours annually (5) No
Blinded Veterans Association
(202) 371-8880 www.bva.org
(1) 198 (2) varies - 70 to 80 hours (3) Yes (4) Yes - 70 to 80 hours annually (5) No
Catholic War Veterans USA
(703) 549-3622 www.cwv.org
(1) 107 (2) No minimum requirement (3) A few local branches may test (4) No (5) No
Disabled American Veterans
(859) 441-7300 www.dav.org
(1) 941 (2) National VSOs: 16 month OJT training; computer-based training course qualifies for 10 college credit hours. State VSO s: Training varies (3) Yes (4) Yes (5) Yes
Fleet Reserve Association
(800) 372-1924 www.fra.org
(1) 407 (2) Varies; VSOs receive training through other veterans groups (3) No (4) No (5) No
Jewish War Veterans of the USA
(202) 265-6280 www.jwv.org
(1) 222 (2) 32 hrs through the VA (3) Yes (4) Yes (5) No
Marine Corps League
(703) 207-9588 www.mcleague.org
(1) 352 (2), (3), (4), & (5) No response
Milit. Order of the Purple Heart
(703) 642-5360 www.purpleheart.org
(1) 617 (2) 64 hrs (3) Yes (4) Yes (5) No
Non-Commissioned Officers Assn
(703) 549-0311 www.ncoausa.org
(1) 367 (2) Training varies; most VSO employed by state or county agencies (3) No (4) Varies; VSOs working directly with group must have11 hrs annually (5) No
Paralyzed Veterans of America
(800) 424-8200 www.pva.org
(1) 129 (2) 16 months OJT (3) No
(4) Yes - 32 to 36 hours annually (5) No
Veterans of Foreign Wars
(816) 756-3390 www.vfw.org
(1) 719 (2) 72 hrs of training during first year of accreditation (3) No (4) Yes (5) No - Required tests at training conference s used to gauge overall training needs.
Vietnam Veterans of America
(800) 882-1316 www.vva.org
(1) 555 (2) Requires 40 hrs training for new VSOs, varies for others (3) yes (4) One advanced course every two years (5) No
KRT_Packages/archive/vets/vets_expertise.pdf MAR 05 ++]
[Note: Organizations in GREEN are thus noted due to the described training/ongoing training provided the Reps, according to the results of the survey. This may have no bearing on any single individuals qualifications however. Doc]
Veterans Disability
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