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Dismissed

The Board has dismissed the DIC claim as the surviving spouse did not meet the eligibility requirements due to her marriage being less than one year prior to the Veteran's death. The appeal is also dismissed for lack of jurisdiction regarding service connection and accrued benefits.

The deciding factor: The Appellant was not married to the Veteran for at least one year prior to his death, which disqualifies her from eligibility for DIC benefits under either section 1310 or 1318.

Claimed conditions
Not specified in this decision
How they argued it
Not specified
Exposure basis
None
Rating assigned
None in this decision
Decision date
November 10, 2021
Citation
21068335

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 21068335.

What this means for you

A dismissal means the Board did not decide the issue on its merits — usually because it was withdrawn or had become moot. It says more about procedure than about whether a claim like this can win.

What you can do next

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