DVA's 2025-26 claims processing data shows the department made more decisions than any year on record. It also shows the queue of claims waiting for a decision grew larger than it was the year before, and the average wait for a claim still sitting in that queue got longer. Both of these come from the same DVA data. Neither one cancels the other out.
This article walks through what DVA actually reported, why the "record year" headline and the "still waiting" reality both hold, and what it means if your own claim covers more than one condition or has been open a long time.
DVA claims processing, 2025-26
238,389 conditions decided
Up 19% on the year before. A genuine record.
103,074 claims on hand
The queue as at 30 June 2026. Larger than the year before.
210 days
Average age of an MRCA initial liability claim still waiting, up from 190.7 days in December 2025.
364 days
Blended average time to finish an MRCA initial liability claim this year, including old claims. Up from 315 days.
DVA did make more decisions this year
Start with what's genuinely true. According to DVA's claims processing data, 52,023 veterans submitted claims in 2025-26, up 14% on the year before. DVA made decisions on 238,389 individual conditions across those claims, up 19%.
That is more veterans lodging and more decisions coming out the other end than in any previous year DVA has reported. It is a real increase in throughput, not a rounding trick or a change in how DVA counts things.
The other half: the queue got bigger too
DVA received 109,221 claims in 2025-26. It completed 94,433 claim determinations in the same period. Receiving more claims than you finish grows the queue, even in a year where the number of decisions made is a record.
Claims on hand reached 103,074 as at 30 June 2026, up on the year before. And the claims sitting in that queue have, on average, been waiting longer than they were:
| Claim type | December 2025 | 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| MRCA initial liability, average age on hand | 190.7 days | 210 days |
| MRCA permanent impairment, average age on hand | 158.8 days | 175 days |
Two real, sourced facts about the same system: DVA finished more claims than ever, and the claims still waiting are older on average than they were nine months earlier. Neither figure is wrong. They are both DVA's own numbers.
Three different numbers answer three different questions
This is the part that trips people up, because DVA publishes more than one "how long does it take" figure for the same claim type, and they genuinely don't measure the same thing.
210 days: how old the current queue is
This is the average age of MRCA initial liability claims still sitting with DVA, undecided, right now. It is a snapshot of the queue on a given date. It tells you nothing about how fast a brand new claim will be decided. It tells you how long the claims already in the system have been there.
Around 148 days: speed for a fresh claim
This figure covers only claims that were both received and finished within the same recent 12-month window. It's the closest thing DVA publishes to "how long does it take under normal conditions right now." It's meaningfully faster than the other two figures, because it excludes anything that had been sitting around for a long time before this year started.
364 days: the blended figure, historical claims included
This is the average time to finish an MRCA initial liability claim across everything DVA completed this financial year, including claims that had been open well over a year before they were finally decided. It is up from 315 days the year before. This is the number that best reflects what someone with an older or more complex claim has actually experienced.
All three are real DVA figures. None of them is "the" answer to "how long does a DVA claim take." The honest answer depends on which of these three questions you're actually asking.
Why the record and the backlog are both real
Part of the answer is that a "claim" isn't a fixed unit of work. The average claim now covers around 4.55 conditions (June 2025), up from 2.6 in May 2022. Each condition inside a claim needs its own assessment against a Statement of Principles. A claim with four conditions is genuinely more work than a claim with one, even though DVA's claims-received count treats them as a single claim either way.
That's a real part of why the number of conditions decided (238,389, up 19%) has grown faster than the number of claims lodged (52,023 veterans, up 14%). DVA is doing more assessment work per claim than it used to, on top of handling more claims overall. Some of the "record decisions" number reflects that added complexity, not only raw speed.
None of this makes DVA's reporting misleading. Claims on hand, average age of the queue, and conditions per claim are all figures DVA itself publishes. Reading only the headline number, without the queue and the age-of-claims figures next to it, is where the misleading impression comes from.
What this means if you're waiting on a claim
If your claim covers a single, straightforward condition and was lodged recently, the faster figure (around 148 days) is closer to what you might reasonably expect.
If your claim covers several conditions, or it's a claim that's been sitting with DVA for well over a year, the 364-day blended figure is the more realistic comparison, not the "record decisions" headline. A multi-condition claim involves more individual assessments, and an older claim is more likely to be one of the historical cases dragging that blended average up.
What we recommend
Check which of the three figures actually describes your situation before you decide whether your wait is normal. A veteran advocate can request a status update on your specific claim and tell you where it genuinely sits, rather than comparing it against a single national average that may not apply to your circumstances.
Frequently asked questions
Related guides
Your DVA claim is taking forever. Here's why, and what you can do about it.
The companion piece: if your claim has been sitting for months, DVA's own numbers explain the delay, and there are four things you can actually do about it.
Your existing DVA claim is safe. Here's what actually changes on 1 July.
What the DRCA and VEA closing to new claims actually means, and who the 1 July 2026 MRCA transition affects.
What the DRCA deadline actually covers, and what it doesn't
Initial liability, permanent impairment, and the three simultaneous payment streams for ADF members medically discharging.
Most veterans think the Gold Card bar is higher than it actually is
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DVA & CSC advocacy: Lavender Bear
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Sources
Figures in this article are drawn from DVA's published claims processing data (updated 15 July 2026) and DVA's related public update (16 August 2026). This is general information only. It is not legal or financial advice. Lavender Bear is an independent platform and is not affiliated with DVA or any government agency. Consult a veteran advocate or DVA-accredited representative for advice on your specific claim.