The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has reported a significant reduction in the backlog of veterans waiting for compensation and pension benefits. According to the VA, since the beginning of the second Trump Administration on January 20, the number of backlogged claims has dropped from 264,717 to 112,353. This represents a decrease of more than 57%.
A claim is considered backlogged if it has been pending for over 125 days. The VA attributes this reduction to several production milestones achieved during fiscal year 2025. These include processing a record 3,001,734 disability compensation and pension claims, surpassing the previous record set in fiscal year 2024. Additionally, one million disability claims were processed by February 20—earlier than ever before in any fiscal year.
Other notable achievements include processing 15,364 claims on May 29—the highest single-day total—and handling 300,799 claims in July, marking the most productive month on record for claim processing. The VA also improved its accuracy rate for claims processed over a twelve-month period to 93.5% as of September 2025, up from 91.6% in October 2024.
In total, $195 billion was distributed in compensation and pension benefit payments to more than 6.9 million veterans and survivors during fiscal year 2025.
“Under President Trump, VA is constantly raising the bar for customer service and convenience,” said VA Secretary Doug Collins. “Our record claims processing productivity is proof these efforts are working. Veterans deserve fast and accurate claims decisions, and we look forward to continuing to deliver amazing results to those who have worn the uniform.”
For context, under the Biden Administration there was an increase in the backlog by about 24%, rising from approximately 213,189 pending cases on January 20, 2021 to over a quarter-million by January of this year. Historically, the backlog peaked at around 611,000 cases in March of 2013 and reached its lowest point at just under sixty-five thousand cases in December of 2019.
