M21-1 and 38 CFR changes, week of Sep 17, 2018

Added

• section 306 (veterans, surviving spouses and children) | See—
• (3) Earnings of members of family under legal age | ......do | Excluded | ......do | Excluded | § 3.250(b)(2).§ 3.252(e)(3).
• (15) Retirement pay received direct from service department | Included......do | Included......do | Included......do | Included......do | § 3.262(e).§ 3.262(h).
• (18) Railroad Retirement benefits | ......do | Included | Disability pension—Excluded Death pension—Included | Included | § 3.262(g).
• Government employees | Included | Included | Disability pension—Excluded.
• Death pension—Included | Included |
• (35) Income received under Section 6 of the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act (Pub.
• 101-426) | Excluded | Excluded | Included | Included | § 3.262(t)

and 4 more added passages

Removed

• section 306 (veterans, surviving spouses and children) | See -
• (3) Earnings of members of family under legal age | ......do | Excluded | ......do | Excluded | § 3.250(b)(2).
• (15) Retirement pay received direct from service department | Included
• ......do | Included
• ......do | Included
• ......do | Included
• ......do | § 3.262(e).

and 28 more removed passages

Added

• Link to an amendment published at 83 FR 47268, Sept.

and 1 more added passages

Added

• (e) VA will exclude from the corpus of estate or net worth any amount designated by statute as not countable as a resource.
• See § 3.279.
• 83 FR 47269, Sept.

and 2 more added passages

Removed

• (e) Agent Orange settlement payments.
• There shall be excluded from the corpus of estate or net worth of a claimant any payment made from the Agent Orange Settlement Fund or any other fund established pursuant to the settlement in the In re Agent Orange product liability litigation, M.D.L.
• (January 1, 1989)
• 101-201, 103 Stat.

and 40 more removed passages

Added

• (a) Sections 3.250 through 3.263 and 3.278 through 3.279.
• in §§ 3.250 through 3.263 and 3.278 through 3.279 referring to section 306 or old-law pension generally refer to provisions of law in effect on December 31, 1978.
• (b) Sections 3.271 through 3.279.
• 6, 1979, as amended at 83 FR 47269, Sept.

and 1 more added passages

Removed

• (a) Sections 3.250 to 3.270.
• in §§ 3.250 to 3.270 referring to section 306 or old-law pension generally refer to provisions of law in effect on December 31, 1978.
• (b) Sections 3.271 to 3.300.

and 1 more removed passages

Added

• (i) Waiver of receipt of income.
• Potential income that is not excludable under § 3.272 or § 3.279 but is waived by an individual is included as countable income of the individual.
• However, if an individual withdraws a claim for Social Security benefits, after a finding of entitlement to those benefits, in order to maintain eligibility for unreduced Social Security benefits upon reaching a particular age, VA will not regard this potential income as having been waived and will therefore not count it.
• 83 FR 47269, Sept.

and 5 more added passages

Added

• For the definition of what constitutes a medical expense, see § 3.278, Deductible medical expenses.
• (k) Veterans' benefits from States and municipalities.
• VA will exclude from income payments from a State or municipality to a veteran of a monetary benefit that is paid as a veterans' benefit due to injury or disease.
• VA will exclude up to $5,000 of such benefit in any annualization period.
• (o) Cash surrender value of life insurance.
• (p) Radiation Exposure Compensation Act.

and 20 more added passages

Removed

• (k) Domestic Volunteer Service Act Programs.
• Payments received under a Domestic Volunteer Service Act (DVSA) Program (including Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA), University Year for ACTION (UYA), Foster Grandparent Program (FGP), Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), Senior Companion Program) shall be excluded as provided in paragraphs (k)(1) and (2) of this section:
• (1) All DVSA payments received before December 13, 1979, shall be excluded from determining entitlement to improved pension.
• (2) DVSA payments received after December 12, 1979, shall be excluded from determining entitlement to improved pension unless the Director of the ACTION Agency has determined that the value of all DVSA payments, adjusted to reflect the number of hours served by the volunteer, equals or exceeds the minimum wage then in effect under the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 or the minimum wage of the St…

and 62 more removed passages

Added

• (a) Net worth limit.
• For purposes of entitlement to VA pension, the net worth limit effective October 18, 2018 is $123,600.
• This limit will be increased by the same percentage as the Social Security increase whenever there is a cost-of-living increase in benefit amounts payable under section 215(i) of title II of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C.
• VA will publish the current limit on its website at www.benefits.va.gov/pension/.
• (b) When a claimant's or beneficiary's net worth exceeds the limit.
• Except as provided in paragraph (h)(2) of this section, VA will deny or discontinue pension if a claimant's or beneficiary's net worth exceeds the net worth limit in paragraph (a) of this section.
• (1) Net worth.

and 95 more added passages

Removed

• Pension shall be denied or discontinued when the corpus of the estate of the veteran, and of the veteran's spouse, are such that under all the circumstances, including consideration of the annual income of the veteran, the veteran's spouse, and the veteran's children, it is reasonable that some part of the corpus of such estates be consumed for the veteran's maintenance.
• (b) Increased pension payable to a veteran for a child.
• Increased pension payable to a veteran on account of a child shall be denied or discontinued when the corpus of the estate of the child is such that under all the circumstances including consideration of the veteran's and spouse's income and the income of the veteran's child or children, it is reasonable that some part of the corpus of such child's estate be consumed for the child's maintenance.

and 20 more removed passages

Added

• (a) Definitions pertaining to assets—(1) Assets.
• The term assets means the fair market value of all property that an individual owns, including all real and personal property, unless excluded under paragraph (b) of this section, less the amount of mortgages or other encumbrances specific to the mortgaged or encumbered property.
• VA will consider the terms of the recorded deed or other evidence of title to be proof of ownership of a particular asset.
• See also § 3.276(a)(4), which defines “fair market value.”
• (i) Except as provided in paragraph (a)(2)(ii) of this section, for the purposes of this section and § 3.276, claimant means a pension beneficiary, a dependent spouse, or a dependent or potential dependent child as described in § 3.274(d), as well as a veteran, surviving spouse, or surviving child pension applicant.
• (ii) For the purpose of paragraph (b)(1) of this section, claimant means a pension beneficiary or applicant who is a veteran, a surviving spouse, or a surviving child.
• (3) Residential lot area.

and 47 more added passages

Removed

• The following rules are for application in determining the corpus of estate or net worth of a veteran, surviving spouse or child under § 3.274.
• The terms corpus of estate and net worth mean the market value, less mortgages or other encumbrances, of all real and personal property owned by the claimant, except the claimant's dwelling (single family unit), including a reasonable lot area, and personal effects suitable to and consistent with the claimant's reasonable mode of life.
• See § 3.271(d).
• In determining whether some part of the claimant's estate (or combined estates under § 3.274 (a) and (e)) should be consumed for the claimant's maintenance, consideration will be given to the amount of the claimant's income together with the following:

and 65 more removed passages

Added

• (a) Asset transfer definitions.
• For purposes of this section -
• (1) Claimant has the same meaning as defined in § 3.275(a)(2)(i).
• (2) Covered asset means an asset that -
• (i) Was part of a claimant's net worth;
• (ii) Was transferred for less than fair market value;
• (iii) If not transferred, would have caused or partially caused the claimant's net worth to exceed the net worth limit under § 3.274(a).
• (3) Covered asset amount means the monetary amount by which a claimant's net worth would have exceeded the limit due to the covered asset alone if the uncompensated value of the covered asset had been included in net worth.

and 74 more added passages

Removed

• (a) Waiver of receipt of income.
• Potential income, not excludable under § 3.272 and whose receipt has been waived by an individual, shall be included as countable income of that individual for Department of Veterans Affairs pension purposes.
• (b) Transfer of assets.
• For pension purposes, a gift of property made by an individual to a relative residing in the same household shall not be recognized as reducing the corpus of the grantor's estate.
• A sale of property to such a relative shall not be recognized as reducing the corpus of the seller's estate if the purchase price, or other consideration for the sale, is so low as to be tantamount to a gift.
• A gift of property to someone other than a relative residing in the grantor's household will not be recognized as reducing the corpus of the grantor's estate unless it is clear that the grantor has relinquished all rights of ownership, including the right of control of the property.

and 1 more removed passages

Added

• (2) The Secretary may require an eligibility verification report under the following circumstances:
• 83 FR 47272, Sept.

and 2 more added passages

Removed

• (2) The Secretary shall require an eligibility verification report under the following circumstances:

and 1 more removed passages

Added

• §§ 3.57, 3.950)—(i) Pension.
• (c) Medicaid-covered nursing home care (§ 3.551(i)).
• (1) Last day of the calendar month in which Medicaid payments begin, last day of the month following 60 days after issuance of a prereduction notice required under § 3.103(b)(2), or the earliest date on which payment may be reduced without creating an overpayment, whichever date is later;
• (2) If the child or the child's custodian willfully conceals information necessary to make the reduction, the last day of the month in which that willful concealment occurred.
• 83 FR 47275, Sept.

and 2 more added passages

Removed

• §§ 3.57, 3.950) - (i) Pension.

and 1 more removed passages

Added

• (i) Certain beneficiaries receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care.
• This paragraph (i) applies to a veteran without a spouse or child, to a surviving spouse without a child, and to a surviving child.
• Effective November 5, 1990, and terminating on the date provided in 38 U.S.C.
• 5503(d)(7), if such a beneficiary is receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care, no pension or survivors pension in excess of $90 per month will be paid to or for the beneficiary for any period after the month in which the Medicaid payments begin.
• A beneficiary is not liable for any pension paid in excess of the $90 per month by reason of the Secretary's inability or failure to reduce payments, unless that inability or failure is the result of willful concealment, by the beneficiary, of information necessary to make that reduction.

Removed

• (i) Certain veterans and surviving spouses receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care.
• Effective November 5, 1990, and terminating on September 30, 2011, if a veteran having neither spouse nor child, or a surviving spouse having no child, is receiving Medicaid-covered nursing home care, no pension or death pension in excess of $90 per month shall be paid to or for the veteran or the surviving spouse for any period after the month in which the Medicaid payments begin.
• A veteran or surviving spouse is not liable for any pension paid in excess of the $90 per month by reason of the Secretary's inability or failure to reduce payments, unless that inability or failure is the result of willful concealment by the veteran or surviving spouse of information necessary to make that reduction.

Added

• (a) Reduction or discontinuance—(1) General.
• Where a claim has been finally disallowed or terminated because of the corpus of estate and net worth provisions of § 3.263 and entitlement is established on the basis of a reduction in estate or net worth, or a change in circumstances such as health, acquisition of a dependent, or increased rate of depletion of the estate, benefits or increased benefits will not be paid for any period prior to t…
• 83 FR 47275, Sept.

and 2 more added passages

Removed

• (a) Reduction or discontinuance - (1) General.
• Where a claim has been finally disallowed or terminated because of the corpus of estate and net worth provisions of §§ 3.263 or 3.274 and entitlement is established on the basis of a reduction in estate or net worth, or a change in circumstances such as health, acquisition of a dependent, or increased rate of depletion of the estate, benefits or increased benefits will not be paid for any period …

and 1 more removed passages