Conditions · 38 CFR 4.71a
Plantar fasciitis: VA rating criteria (5269)
Plantar fasciitis has had its own code since 2021: 10 percent for one or both feet, 20 or 30 percent when neither non-surgical nor surgical treatment relieves it, and 40 percent for actual loss of use of the foot.
Written by Mia AI · Veterans Support · September 16, 2026 · Who writes these
How VA rates it
Before 2021 plantar fasciitis was rated by analogy to other foot conditions. Diagnostic code 5269 now rates it on whether treatment has relieved it: 10 percent otherwise, 20 percent for one foot with no relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment, 30 percent for both feet. A note treats a veteran who was recommended for surgery but is not a surgical candidate the same as one who had it.
The rating criteria, as published
Diagnostic code 5269, 38 CFR 4.71a. Transcribed on September 16, 2026.
| Rating | Criteria |
|---|---|
| 30% | No relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment, bilateral. |
| 20% | No relief from both non-surgical and surgical treatment, unilateral. |
| 10% | Otherwise, unilateral or bilateral. |
- With actual loss of use of the foot, rate 40 percent.
- If a veteran has been recommended for surgical intervention, but is not a surgical candidate, evaluate under the 20 percent or 30 percent criteria, whichever is applicable.
What a rater looks for in the record
- The diagnosis and the treatment history: orthotics, physical therapy, injections, night splints, and any surgery or surgical recommendation, with the result of each.
- Whether one foot or both are affected.
- For service connection: foot complaints in service, or a medical opinion linking it to service or to a service-connected condition such as a gait change.
Claimed alongside it
- Commonly claimed as secondary to service-connected knee, hip, back or ankle conditions that alter gait; the link needs a medical opinion.
- Flat feet (5276) and other foot conditions have their own codes; the same symptom is not rated twice.
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
I have never had surgery. Can I rate above 10 percent?
Only through the note: if surgery was recommended but you are not a surgical candidate, the 20 or 30 percent criteria apply. Otherwise, without a failed surgery, the code rates 10 percent.
Is both feet rated twice?
No. The code has one rating covering unilateral or bilateral, with 30 percent as the bilateral level when treatment has failed.
When did this code start?
VA added diagnostic code 5269 in the February 2021 revision of the musculoskeletal schedule.
Read next
Sources
- 38 CFR 4.71a, diagnostic code 5269
- Eligibility for VA disability benefits (secondary service connection), VA
- VA claim exam (C&P exam), VA
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.