Denied
The Board denied the appellant's claim for recognition as the Veteran's surviving spouse for purposes of eligibility to Dependency and Indemnity Compensation (DIC) benefits due to a legally invalid marriage.
The deciding factor: The marriage did not qualify the appellant for DIC benefits as it occurred less than one year prior to the Veteran's death, and there was no evidence that they held themselves out as married before their December 2010 ceremonial marriage.
- Claimed conditions
- Not specified in this decision
- How they argued it
- Not specified
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- None in this decision
- Decision date
- October 29, 2025
- Citation
- A25094025
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