ORLANDO, Fla. – The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs has extended the deadline for veterans and survivors to apply for retroactive benefits through the PACT Act.
The deadline to file a claim or submit an “intent to file” form has been pushed back to Aug. 14. The deadline was previously set for Aug. 9.
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The deadline was pushed after the Department of Veteran Affairs found that some applicants received error messages when they submitted their claims, according a press release from the VA.
Officials said that applicants were having trouble submitting their claims because the website was receiving too much traffic, but the issue has since been resolved.
The issue specifically targeted veterans attempting to submit an “intent to file” form. Despite the error messages received on the veterans ends, the VA has received their forms and is working to contact everyone who may have been impacted by this technical issue, according to the release.
“We are working to contact these individuals to confirm directly to them that their intent to file will be honored and their effective date protected,” officials said in the release. “Most importantly, no Veteran or survivor will miss out on a single day of benefits due to this issue.”
The VA encourages all veterans and survivors to apply for PACT Act benefits, regardless if they think they are eligible. More information about who is eligible and how to apply for benefits can be found here.
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