Is the 10% Tinnitus Rating Going Away? What the Proposed DC 6260 Rule Actually Says

If you have been told that VA is “about to take away the 10% tinnitus rating,” the short version is this: Diagnostic Code 6260 is still on the books, the proposed rule that would delete it has not been finalized, and veterans who already have a tinnitus rating are protected. Those three facts have not changed since VA published the proposal in February 2022, and they are still true as of April 2026.

That said, the proposed rule is real, and it would meaningfully change how new tinnitus claims are evaluated. Here is exactly what it says, what it does not say, and what veterans with active or pending claims should do now.

The current DC 6260 rating still applies

Under 38 CFR § 4.87, Diagnostic Code 6260 provides a flat 10% rating for recurrent tinnitus, regardless of severity. The rating is the same whether the ringing is mild and intermittent or constant and debilitating, and whether it is perceived in one ear, both ears, or in the head. Only a single evaluation is assigned. A 10% rating pays $180.42 per month in 2026.

Our tinnitus condition guide walks through the full criteria, evidence requirements, and C&P exam expectations under the current rule.

Tinnitus is not an obscure corner of the rating schedule. According to VA’s annual benefits reporting, it is the single most-claimed service-connected disability, with more than 3.2 million veterans currently receiving compensation under DC 6260 — and roughly 273,000 new tinnitus claims approved in FY 2024 alone. That scale is a large part of why VA proposed the change.

What the proposed rule would change

On February 15, 2022, VA published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) in the Federal Register titled “Schedule for Rating Disabilities — Ear, Nose, Throat, and Audiology Disabilities; Special Provisions Regarding Evaluation of Respiratory Conditions; Schedule for Rating Disabilities — Respiratory System” (87 FR 8474).

The proposed rule would delete DC 6260 entirely. In VA’s framing, tinnitus would no longer be a free-standing ratable disability. Instead, it would be evaluated as a symptom of whatever underlying, service-connected condition is causing it — and compensated through that condition’s diagnostic code.

Where tinnitus would be rated under the proposed rule

The important mechanics in that table:

• DC 6100. Under the proposal, a 10% rating for tinnitus would be available through the hearing-loss diagnostic code only when the hearing loss itself is noncompensable — that is, when the audiogram does not support 10% or higher on its own. If hearing loss is already rated at 10% or more, tinnitus is treated as absorbed into that evaluation.
• DC 6204 / 6205 / 8045. When tinnitus is a symptom of a vestibular disorder, Meniere’s disease, or TBI, those diagnostic codes already produce evaluations that are typically higher than a stand-alone 10% for tinnitus. In those cases, the overall rating may not drop — but the 10% tinnitus evaluation would no longer stack as a separate award.

Who would be most affected

The veterans with the most to lose under the proposal are those with recurrent tinnitus, a normal audiogram, and no other service-connected auditory, vestibular, or neurological condition. Under DC 6260 today, that profile still produces a 10% rating. Under the proposed rule, it could produce 0%, because there would be no underlying service-connected condition to hang the evaluation on.

Veterans with tinnitus secondary to hearing loss, Meniere’s disease, or TBI are far less exposed, because those conditions already carry their own ratings.

The “reduction” myth — what is actually protected

The most common panic around this proposal is that VA will retroactively strip the 10% rating from veterans who already have it. That is not how rating changes work.

• VA’s own statement. The NPRM explicitly provides that the change “will have no impact on veterans currently in receipt of service connection for tinnitus.” Existing evaluations under DC 6260 would continue under that diagnostic code.
• 38 CFR § 3.951(b) — the 20-year rule. A disability evaluation that has been continuously rated at or above a given level for 20 or more years cannot be reduced below that level except on a showing of fraud. See § 3.951.
• 38 CFR § 3.957 — the 10-year rule. Service connection that has been in effect for 10 years or more cannot be severed except on a showing of fraud or a lack of qualifying service. See § 3.957.

A rulemaking cannot override those regulations. Even in a worst case where the proposed rule is finalized tomorrow, veterans already rated under DC 6260 keep what they have.

Evidence strategy under both frameworks

Whether you file under the current rule or a future final rule, the evidentiary core of a strong tinnitus claim is the same:

• A current diagnosis of recurrent tinnitus, documented by a qualified provider.
• Service treatment records or buddy statements establishing in-service acoustic trauma — weapons fire, artillery, aviation, heavy machinery, blast exposure.
• An audiogram with Maryland CNC word recognition if any hearing loss is suspected. Under the proposed rule this becomes especially important, because it is the audiogram that determines whether DC 6100 is compensable on its own.
• A nexus statement from an audiologist or treating provider linking the tinnitus to the in-service exposure.

Our how-to-file guide and C&P exam guide walk through the process end to end.

Action checklist

1. If you have tinnitus and have not filed, file now. Under the current rule, a granted claim is a 10% rating, full stop. Under the proposed rule, the same fact pattern with a normal audiogram could produce 0%.
2. File an Intent to File first if you need time. A VA Form 21-0966 preserves your effective date for up to one year while you gather evidence. See how to file.
3. Get an audiogram with Maryland CNC. If your hearing loss supports a compensable rating under DC 6100, your claim is insulated from the proposed change. If it does not, the current DC 6260 framework is significantly more favorable.
4. Do not panic if you already have a rating. Your evaluation is protected by the NPRM’s own language and by §§ 3.951 and 3.957.

Bottom line

As of April 2026, the 10% tinnitus rating under DC 6260 is still the law. The 2022 proposed rule has not been finalized, VA has not published a final rule, and no effective date has been announced. If VA does finalize the rule in its current form, the biggest impact falls on future claims from veterans whose tinnitus is not accompanied by another ratable auditory or neurological condition — not on existing beneficiaries.

The sensible move for veterans with unfiled tinnitus claims is to file now, under the framework we know, rather than wait for a rule that may or may not arrive and may or may not look the same when it does.

Read more

• Tinnitus VA disability rating — current DC 6260 criteria, evidence, and payment amounts
• Hearing loss VA disability rating — DC 6100 and Maryland CNC thresholds
• Meniere’s disease — DC 6205 rating criteria
• TBI VA disability rating — DC 8045 residuals
• How to file a VA disability claim — including Intent to File
• C&P exam guide — what to expect at a tinnitus or audiology exam