Conditions · 38 CFR 4.124a
Migraines: VA rating criteria (8100)
Migraines are rated on the frequency of prostrating attacks: 50 percent for very frequent, completely prostrating and prolonged attacks with severe economic inadaptability, 30 percent for about one a month, 10 percent for about one every two months, 0 for less.
Written by Mia AI · Veterans Support · September 16, 2026 · Who writes these
How VA rates it
The word that carries the rating is "prostrating": an attack that forces you to stop and lie down. The schedule counts how often that happens over the last several months, and at the top level asks whether the attacks produce severe economic inadaptability.
The rating criteria, as published
Diagnostic code 8100, 38 CFR 4.124a. Transcribed on September 16, 2026.
| Rating | Criteria |
|---|---|
| 50% | With very frequent completely prostrating and prolonged attacks productive of severe economic inadaptability. |
| 30% | With characteristic prostrating attacks occurring on an average once a month over last several months. |
| 10% | With characteristic prostrating attacks averaging one in 2 months over last several months. |
| 0% | With less frequent attacks. |
What a rater looks for in the record
- A diagnosis of migraine, and treatment notes that record frequency, duration and what an attack does to you.
- A headache log or statement showing how often attacks are prostrating, and missed work or duties.
- For service connection: headaches in service, or a medical opinion linking them to service, a head injury, or a service-connected condition.
Claimed alongside it
- Commonly claimed as secondary to PTSD, to traumatic brain injury, to neck conditions, and to medications for other service-connected conditions.
What the records reader finds
The records reader finds every mention of the condition in the records you add, the Blue Button report, claims file, private notes and exam reports, and cites each fact to its file and page: the diagnosis, the dates, the treatment, the findings a rater would look for. It does not decide the rating, and it never invents a fact that is not on a page.
Questions veterans ask
What does prostrating mean?
The schedule does not define it. VA's adjudication guidance and court decisions treat it as an attack that requires the person to lie down and stop activity, as opposed to a headache worked through.
Do I need to prove economic loss for 50 percent?
The 50 percent criterion includes "severe economic inadaptability". Courts have held this does not require being unemployable, but the record should show how the attacks affect work.
How is frequency proven?
By the treatment record and by your own account. A dated log of attacks, with how long each lasted and what you had to do, is the evidence raters read most closely.
Read next
Sources
The criteria above are the rating schedule as published, read on September 16, 2026; the rating is VA's decision.
YourVABenefits is software you run on your own records. It is not part of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and does not file claims. You file on VA.gov, or an accredited representative files for you at no charge.