Skin conditions (dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis)
This covers chronic skin conditions such as dermatitis, eczema, and psoriasis. The VA generally rates them by how much of the body is affected and what treatment is required.
How the VA looks at Skin conditions (dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis)
VA rating schedule, diagnostic code 7806
The VA recognizes chronic skin conditions like dermatitis, eczema, and psoriasis as ratable disabilities, evaluated under 38 CFR § 4.118, the rating schedule for the skin. Dermatitis and eczema are rated under Diagnostic Code 7806 and psoriasis under Diagnostic Code 7816 — both use the same General Rating Formula for the Skin.
Your rating depends on how much of your body is involved and what treatment you need. Ratings turn on the percent of your total body area or of exposed areas affected, and on the type and duration of therapy required over the past 12 months. As general guideposts: more than 40% of the body or exposed areas affected, or constant or near-constant systemic therapy (such as corticosteroids, biologics, or other immunosuppressive drugs), can support a 60% rating; 20–40% affected, or systemic therapy for six weeks or more but not constant, can support 30%; at least 5% but less than 20% affected, or intermittent systemic therapy for less than six weeks, can support 10%; and less than 5% with no more than topical therapy is a 0% (noncompensable) rating. Systemic therapy is treatment given through a route other than the skin; topical therapy is applied to the skin.
Because skin conditions often flare up and then calm down, keeping records of your flare-ups and your treatment over time can matter a great deal.
This is general educational information about how the VA's rules work — not legal advice, not a VA decision, and not a prediction about any individual claim. Outcomes depend on your own facts and evidence; a denial can be appealed.
Sources
Grounded in federal regulations and VA guidance, independently reviewed June 2026. Educational information, not legal advice or a VA determination.
Across 10,976 real Board appeals for Skin conditions (dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis)
59% were granted, partly granted, or remanded.
A denial is often not the end — remands are sent back for more development and frequently end in a grant.
- Granted 22%
- Partly granted 8%
- Remanded 28%
- Denied 36%
- Dismissed 6%
What tends to win
Among the appeals that were granted or partly granted, the most common ways Skin conditions (dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis) was linked to service:
- Direct service connection2,469
- Reopened with new & material evidence229
- Presumptive (no nexus needed)210
How it’s rated, in practice
When Skin conditions (dermatitis, eczema, psoriasis) was granted, the rating most often assigned was:
- 10% (403)
- 30% (310)
- 100% (217)
- 60% (180)
- 50% (135)
Presumptive & exposure paths
These appeals involved a recognized exposure — which can mean the link to service is presumed, with no nexus to prove:
- Agent Orange / herbicides426
- Burn pits & airborne hazards333
- PACT Act226
- Gulf War158
- Camp Lejeune water34
Real decisions
- Granted
The Board granted an effective date of March 20, 2017, for service connection for a bladder disability, obstructive sleep apnea, hypertension, and skin disabilities based on direct service connection due to in-service exposure to water at Camp Lejeune and burn pits in Southwest Asia.
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for eczema, finding that the evidence is at least in approximate balance as to whether the Veteran's eczema is related to herbicide agent exposure in service.
- Granted
The Veteran's service-connected disabilities render him unable to follow and secure substantially gainful employment, thus a total disability rating for individual unemployability is granted.
- Granted
The Veteran was granted separate ratings of special monthly compensation (SMC) based on the need for aid and attendance, a higher rating under 38 U.S.C. § 1114(o), and a higher rating under 38 U.S.C. § 1114(r)(1).
- Granted
The Board granted service connection for hypertension, diabetes mellitus type II (DM II), erectile dysfunction, peripheral neuropathy in both upper and lower extremities, hypothyroidism, and dermatitis (claimed as chloracne) based on the Veteran's presumed exposure to herbicide agents during his service in Vietnam.
- Granted
The Board granted an earlier effective date of November 25, 2020, for the award of a 30 percent rating for dermatitis and psoriasis.
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This is general information, not legal advice. For advice about your own situation, talk to a VA-accredited representative — many help for free.