VA Fiduciary Program

VA may appoint a fiduciary after a VA rating decision or medical determination that a veteran cannot manage their own financial affairs. Common reasons include:

• Traumatic brain injury (TBI)
• Severe PTSD
• Dementia or Alzheimer's disease
• Other incapacitating mental or physical conditions

VA conducts a field examination to select an appropriate fiduciary. This may be a family member, another individual, or a professional fiduciary organization.

A fiduciary is legally responsible for managing VA benefit payments on behalf of the veteran. Their responsibilities include:

• Managing VA benefit funds — receiving and disbursing VA payments
• Ensuring funds are used for the veteran's care and wellbeing — housing, food, medical expenses, personal needs
• Submitting annual accountings to VA — showing how every dollar was spent
• Following VA fiduciary guidelines — maintaining separate accounts, keeping records

Even if VA has appointed a fiduciary for you, you have important rights:

• Right to be notified when VA appoints a fiduciary
• Right to appeal the appointment to the Board of Veterans' Appeals
• Right to request VA replace the current fiduciary with a new one if you believe they are not acting in your best interest
• 1 year from the date of the notification letter to exercise decision review options

How to Challenge a Fiduciary Decision

You have three options within 1 year of the decision:

1. Supplemental Claim — submit new evidence showing you can manage your finances
2. Higher-Level Review — request a more senior reviewer examine the decision
3. Board Appeal — appeal to the Board of Veterans' Appeals

Fiduciary fraud — where a fiduciary steals or misuses a veteran's benefits — has been a persistent problem. The Veterans' Fiduciary Fraud Reimbursement Act has been introduced in Congress to strengthen protections. If enacted, it would:

• Require VA to repay stolen benefits in full to the veteran
• Apply reimbursement even if the veteran dies before the theft is discovered — funds would go to the veteran's estate or beneficiaries
• This would be a significant improvement over the current system, where victims of fiduciary fraud have limited recourse. Check congress.gov for the bill's current status

Signs of Fiduciary Fraud

• Basic needs not being met (housing, food, medical care)
• Fiduciary refusing to provide financial accounting
• Unexplained withdrawals or expenditures
• Fiduciary not submitting annual accountings to VA
• Veteran not receiving spending money or personal allowance

If you suspect fraud, report it to VA Inspector General at va.gov/oig/hotline or call 1-800-488-8244.

Before VA appoints a fiduciary, a VA field examiner conducts an investigation known as a field examination. This is required under 38 CFR Part 13 and is used to assess the beneficiary's situation and evaluate the suitability of any proposed fiduciary.

What the field examiner looks at:

• The beneficiary's living situation, care arrangements, and basic needs
• The beneficiary's ability to understand and manage money, bills, and benefits
• Existing financial accounts, income sources, expenses, and debts
• The proposed fiduciary's background, credit history, criminal history, and relationship to the beneficiary
• Whether any other person has been managing the beneficiary's funds informally

Who the examiner may interview:

• The beneficiary (an in-person interview is standard)
• The proposed fiduciary
• Family members, caregivers, or friends familiar with the beneficiary's situation
• Treating physicians or care facility staff

Your rights during the exam:

• Right to be interviewed in person (not just through third parties)
• Right to be informed of the purpose of the exam and what is being decided
• Right to suggest a preferred fiduciary (VA gives preference to someone who will best serve your interest, typically a family member)
• Right to have an accredited representative, attorney, or family member present
• Right to submit evidence showing you can manage your own benefits

38 CFR Part 13; benefits.va.gov/fiduciary/

VA's finding that you cannot manage your own benefits — and the related appointment of a fiduciary — is a decision you have the right to contest. Before VA finalizes a proposed rating of incompetency, it must provide advance written notice and an opportunity to respond, including the right to a hearing and the right to submit evidence showing you are capable of managing your own affairs.

Decision review options (within 1 year of the decision):

• Supplemental Claim — submit new and relevant evidence (medical opinions, financial records, testimony from people who know you)
• Higher-Level Review — a more senior VA adjudicator reviews the same record
• Board Appeal — appeal to the Board of Veterans' Appeals (direct review, evidence submission, or hearing lane)

Fiduciary-specific decision reviews are handled through va.gov/decision-reviews/fiduciary-claims. The review procedures for fiduciary determinations are set out in 38 CFR 13.500.

Evidence that can help your challenge:

• An independent medical opinion addressing your capacity to manage financial affairs
• Bank statements, budgets, and bill-pay records showing you have been managing money responsibly
• Statements from family, employers, social workers, or clinicians
• Evidence that the original determination was based on outdated or incomplete records

If you exhaust VA's review lanes and the Board denies your appeal, you can seek review at the U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims (CAVC), and in limited cases further review at the Federal Circuit.

38 CFR 13.500; va.gov/decision-reviews/fiduciary-claims

A fiduciary is not a permanent appointment. If your fiduciary is not acting in your best interest, you (or a concerned family member) can request that VA remove and replace them through the Fiduciary Hub that serves your region. Because VA appointed the fiduciary administratively, VA can also remove them administratively — you generally do not need to go to court.

Common grounds VA will act on:

• Misuse of VA funds (using benefits for anything other than the beneficiary's care and needs)
• Failure to submit annual accountings on time
• Failure to respond to VA requests for documentation within 30 days
• Basic needs of the beneficiary not being met (housing, food, medical care)
• Unresponsiveness to the beneficiary's requests for funds
• Criminal conduct, bankruptcy, or changes in the fiduciary's own circumstances that make them unsuitable

How to request removal:

1. Contact your regional Fiduciary Hub in writing (start at benefits.va.gov/fiduciary)
2. Describe the specific problems, with dates and supporting documentation where possible
3. Identify a proposed successor fiduciary if you have one in mind (VA gives preference to a family member willing to serve)
4. If misuse is suspected, also report it to the VA Office of Inspector General at va.gov/oig/hotline or 1-800-488-8244

VA will investigate and, if warranted, appoint a successor fiduciary. If VA confirms misuse, VA is required to reissue the misused benefits to you or your successor fiduciary under 38 USC 6107. Court intervention (e.g., a guardianship proceeding) is only necessary in unusual circumstances where VA's administrative process is not sufficient.

38 CFR Part 13; 38 USC 6107; benefits.va.gov/fiduciary

A VA fiduciary appointment is narrow: it gives the fiduciary authority over your federal VA benefit payments only. It is not a court-ordered guardianship and does not strip you of your civil rights. Being found unable to manage VA benefits does not, by itself, mean you lose the ability to make other life decisions.

What you keep:

• Right to vote in federal, state, and local elections
• Right to marry, divorce, and make family decisions
• Right to manage non-VA income (wages, Social Security, retirement, private accounts) unless a separate court order says otherwise
• Right to own property, sign contracts, and make purchases with non-VA funds
• Right to make medical decisions for yourself (absent a separate court finding of incapacity)
• Right to firearms ownership is governed by federal and state law separately — VA reports competency determinations to NICS; you can seek relief through VA's administrative process if applicable
• Right to contact your fiduciary, request funds for personal needs, and receive a copy of the annual accounting

What is restricted:

• Receiving VA benefit payments directly — these are paid to the fiduciary
• Spending VA funds without the fiduciary's involvement

Restoration of Competency

A finding of inability to manage VA benefits is not permanent. You can request a competency review at any time by submitting evidence that you can now manage your own affairs — typically a medical opinion from a treating clinician, plus documentation (bank records, bills, budgets) showing responsible financial management. VA will conduct a new field examination and, if warranted, rescind the prior finding and discontinue the fiduciary appointment so payments resume directly to you.

VA can also conduct periodic reviews of competency on its own initiative. If your condition has materially improved, request the review proactively rather than waiting.

38 CFR Part 13; benefits.va.gov/fiduciary/