Help veterans access rehabilitation

DVA rehabilitation aims to assist eligible veteran clients to build skills to enable them to maximise their wellbeing. As a general practitioner this information will help you to check whether a veteran is eligible and suitable to take part in our program.

Who is eligible

Not all veterans will be eligible for our rehabilitation program.

A veteran may be eligible for rehabilitation assistance from us if they have an injury or condition that we have accepted as related to their service under either of these Acts:

• the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA)
• the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related claims) Act 1988 (DRCA).

If a veteran already has an injury or condition accepted by us they can apply for the program directly.

If a veteran does not have an accepted injury or condition they can lodge a claim to have it considered by us through MyService. They can also make a claim under the appropriate act. They can:

• claim an injury or condition under MRCA, if they were injured after 30 June 2014
• claim an injury or condition under DRCA, if they were injured before 1 July 2014

How to apply for the rehabilitation program

A veteran who has an accepted condition or injury can apply by completing the relevant claim form:

• Claim for Rehabilitation and Compensation (DRCA)
• Claim for Liability and/or Reassessment of Compensation under MRCA
• Veterans’ Vocational Rehabilitation Scheme Application form

After the veteran completes the relevant claim form they need to send it along with any relevant supporting document/s to either:

• our mailing address
• rehabilitation [at] dva.gov.au (rehabilitation[at]dva[dot]gov[dot]au)

The veteran should keep a copy of the claim form and any documents provided with it for their personal records.

Get information about rehabilitation for your patient

If a veteran would benefit from more information or advice about our program you can contact us on their behalf.

Before you contact us about rehabilitation for your patient you need to make sure:

• you have consent from your patient to do so
• your patient has already lodged a claim for liability for an injury or condition with us

To let us know that  your veteran patient may benefit from rehabilitation you can:

• call 1800 VETERAN (1800 838 372)
• email rehabilitation [at] dva.gov.au (rehabilitation[at]dva[dot]gov[dot]au)

We will follow up with the veteran.

Follow up and management

After we do a needs assessment we will inform the veteran in writing of the outcome. If the veteran is eligible and would benefit from rehabilitation, we will refer them to a contracted rehabilitation provider.

The rehabilitation provider will conduct an assessment and create a rehabilitation plan. This is done in consultation with the veteran. The plan will include:

• the veteran’s rehabilitation goal/s
• the activities that will help to achieve these goal/s
• the expected dates and duration of activities on the plan 

If the plan includes vocational goal/s, you will be asked by the veteran or the rehabilitation provider to fill out a medical certificate so we can confirm the veteran’s medical capacity.

Rehabilitation program information for veterans

If a veteran requires more information please direct them to the rehabilitation client page. You can also email the rehabilitation team at rehabilitation [at] dva.gov.au (rehabilitation[at]dva[dot]gov[dot]au) for more information.