My tinnitus is constant and significantly affects my health. Can I get more than 10% rating?

No — under current VA regulations, the maximum schedular rating for tinnitus itself is 10%, regardless of severity. This is set by Diagnostic Code 6260, and it applies whether your tinnitus affects one ear or both, is constant or intermittent, or severely impacts your sleep and concentration. The 10% is a hard regulatory ceiling for the primary condition. Why veterans with severe tinnitus still get just 10%: The VA’s rating schedule for tinnitus was written with a flat rate rather than a severity scale. That means a veteran with barely noticeable ringing and one who is completely unable to sleep because of constant bilateral tinnitus both receive the same 10% rating for the condition itself. How to increase your total rating when tinnitus is severe: The path to higher total compensation isn’t through fighting the 10% cap. It’s through documenting the secondary conditions tinnitus causes. The conditions most commonly caused or worsened by chronic tinnitus include: - Obstructive Sleep Apnea — sleep disruption from tinnitus can be documented as a secondary condition (rated at 0%, 30%, 50%, or 100%) - Migraines — auditory stress from tinnitus is a recognised migraine trigger; rated separately under DC 8100 (up to 50%) - Depression or Anxiety — chronic tinnitus is strongly associated with psychiatric conditions (up to 100%) - Hearing Loss — frequently co-occurs with tinnitus and rated separately under its own diagnostic code