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Denied

The Board denied recognition of the appellant as the surviving spouse of the Veteran for VA benefits purposes due to a lack of continuous cohabitation from their marriage until his death, and because there was no evidence supporting her claim that they were living together despite being separated.

The deciding factor: The appellant did not provide sufficient evidence showing continuous cohabitation with the Veteran from their marriage until his death, which is required for recognition as a surviving spouse.

Claimed conditions
Not specified in this decision
How they argued it
Not specified
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
May 17, 2018
Citation
18103168

This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 18103168.

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