TPI Veterans

What will happen from 1 July 2026?

Any compensation being received under the VEA and/or DRCA before 1 July 2026 will continue to be paid. They will also continue to be indexed as normal.  However, people in receipt of incapacity payments under the DRCA will have those payments transitioned into the more beneficial MRCA system from that date.

Veterans who are receiving Special Rate (sometimes referred to as ‘TPI’ and ‘TTI’) payments will continue to receive these payments from 1 July 2026.

VEA Veterans who have been issued a TPI Gold Card will retain their card without the need to reapply.

Any new or updated claims lodged from 1 July 2026 will be assessed under the MRCA. 

Whilst VEA veterans not currently in receipt of a TPI Gold Card, can start the process of gathering documents to meet eligibility under the MRCA, only claims from 1 July 2026 will be considered under this expanded eligibility. 

What other supports will be available for TPI veterans?

From 1 July 2026, VEA veterans may be determined to have eligibility for Special Rate Disability Pension (SRDP) under MRCA. Under the MRCA, this is the pathway for eligibility for TPI Gold Card. 

Veterans who are under the pension age and who are unable to work due to their accepted conditions may become eligible for incapacity payments (based on lost income levels) or SRDP under the MRCA. This will particularly benefit veterans who have previously been found ineligible for TPI as they have not met the ‘alone test’ under the VEA (there is no equivalent test under the MRCA for incapacity benefits or SRDP).

Visit the Legislation Reform SRDP page or the incapacity payment page for more information. 

Additional Resources

There is a range of additional resources available on the Legislation Reform website covering a variety of topics. These include: Incapacity Benefits, Additional Disablement Amount (ADA), Special Rate Disability Pension (SRDP) and the Veteran Card.

There are individual pages for different veteran cohorts including DRCA veterans, MRCA veterans and family members of veterans.