Add a spouse or stepchild

Practical guide

Who this is for

Veterans and retirees with a non-US-citizen wife or husband, stepchildren, a new marriage or a recent family change.

Eligibility and coverage rules

• VA may pay additional disability compensation for qualifying dependents when the veteran has a combined rating of at least 30%. That dependency payment is not health insurance.
• CHAMPVA has its own qualifying sponsor and relationship rules and excludes people eligible for TRICARE. For stepchildren, continued household status matters; age, school attendance and marriage can change eligibility.
• For TRICARE, register the spouse and stepchildren in DEERS and make any required plan enrollment change. Marriage generally provides a 90-day qualifying-life-event window. Do not assume a veteran without TRICARE eligibility can create it by registering a marriage.
• Foreign nationality alone is not a complete eligibility decision. Agencies must evaluate the relationship, sponsor status and required evidence. Ask the specific office how to handle a foreign national who has no SSN rather than entering a fabricated number.

Important limits

A dependent on a VA award letter is not automatically enrolled in CHAMPVA, and an ID card is not proof that every medical service will be covered.

Submit a VA dependency claim with Thai family records

1. Open VA Form 21-686c, Application Request to Add and/or Remove Dependents. Use the current download rather than a saved old copy.
2. Complete the applicable spouse or child sections and the required identification and signature sections. For a spouse without an SSN, item 11C expressly instructs you to explain why in Section IX, item 25, Remarks. Never use your own SSN as the spouse's.
3. For a stepchild, complete the household and relationship information the form requests and supply the applicable supporting records. Preserve the original Thai records and any requested translations.
4. Submit through VA's online dependency route or the direct-upload route linked on the form; the paper destination is Department of Veterans Affairs, Evidence Intake Center, PO Box 4444, Janesville, WI 53547-4444, USA. Keep a complete copy and submission receipt.
5. For school attendance at ages 18–23, use Form 21-674; add Form 21-686c too if the child has never been added. This is not the DEA application or CHAMPVA enrollment.

Official forms and instructions

• Current VA Form 21-686c
• Form instructions and mailing destination
• VA dependency online route

Documents checklist

• Confirm the eligibility or treatment that applies to your household.
• Gather the records described above and store them privately.
• Check the current official source before acting.
• Keep a dated copy of applications, agency replies and confirmations.