Major depressive disorder (DC 9434) uses the same General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders as PTSD (DC 9411) and generalized anxiety disorder (DC 9400). 38 CFR § 4.130, Note 2, assigns diagnostic codes 9201 through 9440 to that formula. The formula has six levels: 0, 10, 30, 50, 70, and 100 percent. Eating disorders (DC 9520 and 9521) use a different formula in the same section. The diagnosis differs; this rubric does not.
What the examiner is filling out
- Diagnosis — whether a mental disorder that conforms to DSM-5 criteria is present. Major depressive disorder is diagnostic code 9434. Persistent depressive disorder (dysthymia) is diagnostic code 9433. Both are rated under the General Rating Formula.
- Symptom checklist — the examiner checks symptoms that apply. The public form’s list includes depressed mood, chronic sleep impairment, and suicidal ideation, among other symptoms taken from the rating formula.
- Occupational and social impairment — the examiner checks one statement that best summarizes occupational and social impairment. On the public Mental Disorders DBQ (updated October 14, 2025), that list is “no mental disorder diagnosis” plus six impairment statements that follow the 0, 10, 30, 50, 70, and 100 percent levels. The checkbox is evidence in the file. It is not itself the rating. § 4.126 uses the whole record.
The § 4.130 rubric
A mental condition has been formally diagnosed, but symptoms are not severe enough either to interfere with occupational and social functioning or to require continuous medication.
Occupational and social impairment due to mild or transient symptoms which decrease work efficiency and ability to perform occupational tasks only during periods of significant stress, or symptoms controlled by continuous medication.
Occupational and social impairment with occasional decrease in work efficiency and intermittent periods of inability to perform occupational tasks (although generally functioning satisfactorily, with routine behavior, self-care, and conversation normal), due to such symptoms as: depressed mood, anxiety, suspiciousness, panic attacks (weekly or less often), chronic sleep impairment, mild memory loss (such as forgetting names, directions, recent events).
Occupational and social impairment with reduced reliability and productivity due to such symptoms as: flattened affect; circumstantial, circumlocutory, or stereotyped speech; panic attacks more than once a week; difficulty in understanding complex commands; impairment of short- and long-term memory (e.g., retention of only highly learned material, forgetting to complete tasks); impaired judgment; impaired abstract thinking; disturbances of motivation and mood; difficulty in establishing and maintaining effective work and social relationships.
Occupational and social impairment, with deficiencies in most areas, such as work, school, family relations, judgment, thinking, or mood, due to such symptoms as: suicidal ideation; obsessional rituals which interfere with routine activities; speech intermittently illogical, obscure, or irrelevant; near-continuous panic or depression affecting the ability to function independently, appropriately and effectively; impaired impulse control (such as unprovoked irritability with periods of violence); spatial disorientation; neglect of personal appearance and hygiene; difficulty in adapting to stressful circumstances (including work or a worklike setting); inability to establish and maintain effective relationships.
Total occupational and social impairment, due to such symptoms as: gross impairment in thought processes or communication; persistent delusions or hallucinations; grossly inappropriate behavior; persistent danger of hurting self or others; intermittent inability to perform activities of daily living (including maintenance of minimal personal hygiene); disorientation to time or place; memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name.
These six rows quote the General Rating Formula in 38 CFR § 4.130. Where that formula says “due to such symptoms as,” the symptoms are examples named in the schedule. Under § 4.126, VA assigns the evaluation from all the evidence of record that bears on occupational and social impairment, rather than solely from the examiner’s assessment at the examination. The public Mental Disorders DBQ (updated October 14, 2025) and the public PTSD Review DBQ (updated October 3, 2025) use shorter checkbox lines. Their 10 percent line says “symptoms controlled by medication.” The regulation says “symptoms controlled by continuous medication.”
How to read the criteria
Use the criteria to understand the form
The rating schedule describes findings VA may consider. It is not a script. Describe only what is true in your own words, including frequency, duration, treatment, good and bad days, and effects on daily activities or work. Do not select or rehearse a rating tier.
Describe the full picture accurately
Accuracy reminder
Describe what is true in your own words, including frequency, duration, treatment, good and bad days, and effects on daily activities or work. Do not exaggerate, omit improvement, rehearse a rating tier, or guess. If something varies or you do not know, say that clearly.
Depression may be claimed as secondary
Depression may be claimed as secondary to an already service-connected disability under 38 CFR § 3.310 when the evidence shows it is proximately due to, the result of, or aggravated by that disability. The depression does not have to have started in service for a secondary theory. Severity is still rated under § 4.130. Whether the conditions are connected is a medical question for the opinion and the rest of the record. See the four paths to service connection for how those theories differ.
Bring a witness statement
A spouse or family member can submit a lay statement on VA Form 21-10210describing what they observe — withdrawal, missed work, irritability, neglected hygiene. The rater may consider it as competent lay evidence under § 3.159(a)(2) when it reports firsthand observations accurately.
Use this with the rest of the site
- ▸ Depression condition guide — the rating schedule and evidence checklist for that condition.
- ▸ C&P Exam Prep — a checklist for organizing your history, treatment, and questions before the exam.
- ▸ Coach preview — free five-question preview; the dashboard organizes C&P prep and a VSO packet.
- ▸ Full C&P exam guide — how to describe your symptoms accurately.
Get the free Secondary Conditions Checklist by email
Educational content only. VA publishes Public Disability Benefits Questionnaires. Some DBQs are not available for public use. Rating criteria are in 38 CFR Part 4. Not legal or medical advice. Always consult a VA-accredited VSO or attorney for claim-specific guidance. CFR citations: 38 CFR § 4.130 (General Rating Formula for Mental Disorders, applicable to DC 9434 major depressive disorder and DC 9433 persistent depressive disorder), § 4.126 (evaluation of mental disorders), § 3.310 (disabilities proximately due to or aggravated by a service-connected disease or injury), § 3.159(a)(2) (competent lay evidence). VA Form 21-10210 (Lay/Witness Statement)..