TPI stands for totally and permanently incapacitated. It's the common name for the Special Rate of the Disability Compensation Payment under the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 (VEA), paid to veterans who can't have a normal working life because of their accepted service-related conditions. The Special Rate is $1,955.90 a fortnight from 20 September to 31 December 2026. The VEA closed to new claims on 1 July 2026, so no new TPI claims can be lodged, but existing TPI payments continue and are indexed as normal.
DVA TPI rate
DVA's fortnightly Disability Compensation Payment rates from 20 September to 31 December 2026:
| Rate | Fortnightly amount |
|---|---|
| Special Rate (TPI) and Temporary Special Rate (TTI) | $1,955.90 |
| Intermediate Rate | $1,296.70 |
| Extreme Disablement Adjustment | $1,055.50 |
| General Rate at 100% | $679.10 |
These rates include the Energy Supplement. They're indexed twice a year, and increases are paid automatically. The payment isn't taxable and isn't counted as income for the VEA or social security income tests.
View DVA's Disability Compensation Payment rates
TPI eligibility
These are the criteria DVA applied to TPI claims, and still applies to VEA claims lodged before 1 July 2026 that haven't been decided. If you were under 65 when you claimed, the Special Rate was paid if you were:
- at least 70% incapacitated because of accepted conditions, or receiving the General Rate for pulmonary tuberculosis
- totally and permanently incapacitated because of those conditions
- prevented by them alone from doing your normal paid work, or other substantial work you'd done, for more than 8 hours a week
- losing earnings as a result
If your accepted conditions weren't the only reason you couldn't work, you could still qualify under 65 if you'd been genuinely looking for work and your conditions were the substantial reason you couldn't get it.
If you were 65 or over when you claimed, you also needed to have worked continuously for 10 years, starting before you turned 65, and to have stopped that work because of your accepted conditions alone. Veterans blinded in both eyes by accepted conditions qualify for the Special Rate regardless of their capacity to work.
Read DVA's Special and Intermediate Rate information
TTI and the Intermediate Rate
The Temporary Special Rate, known as TTI, was paid if you met every Special Rate criterion except permanence. DVA sets how long it lasts and what rate applies afterwards. DVA's policy says TTI wouldn't normally be paid for more than six months.
The Intermediate Rate is for veterans who can only work part time or on and off because of their accepted conditions. The criteria are the same as the Special Rate, except that you're prevented from working 50% or more of normal full-time hours, or 20 hours a week, and the incapacity doesn't have to be permanent.
TPI entitlements
- A Veteran Gold Card, because your payment is above 100% of the General Rate. Read about Gold Card entitlements.
- The Veterans Supplement of $14.00 a fortnight if you're under 60 and don't get an income support payment. It's paid automatically.
- The Energy Supplement, which is already included in the rate.
If you receive compensation for the same incapacity from another source, DVA adjusts your payment so you aren't paid twice. Special Rate grants from claims lodged between 1 July 2004 and 30 June 2026 were also adjusted for any DRCA permanent impairment lump sum. Veterans receiving TPI can't also receive the Additional Disablement Amount.
What changed on 1 July 2026
If you already receive TPI, nothing changes: your payment continues and is indexed. New claims, including claims for a new condition or for a condition that has worsened, are made under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA). This replaces the VEA application for increase. When DVA works out MRCA permanent impairment compensation, it takes your VEA Disability Compensation Payment into account.
If you're under Age Pension age and can't work because of accepted conditions, you may now be assessed for MRCA incapacity payments or the Special Rate Disability Pension (SRDP). The SRDP is based on the TPI rate, but it has no "alone" test, which DVA says will particularly help veterans previously refused TPI on that test. You'd need 50 or more impairment points, MRCA incapacity payments, and confirmation from your treating specialists that you can't work more than 10 hours a week and rehabilitation is unlikely to help. SRDP comes with a Gold Card embossed "TPI". Its offsetting rules differ from TPI.
Read DVA's information for VEA veterans
If you disagree with a TPI decision
You can ask the Veterans' Review Board to review a decision about your rate of Disability Compensation Payment. For decisions made from 21 April 2025, the time limit for VEA pension rate matters is 3 months. For VEA entitlement matters it's 12 months, but full arrears are only paid if you apply within 3 months. Your decision letter sets out the time limit and how to apply. Free advocates at ex-service organisations can help. Read about DVA reviews and appeals.
Common questions
Can I still apply for TPI?
No. The VEA closed to new claims on 1 July 2026. A VEA claim lodged before then is still decided under the VEA. New claims go under the MRCA, where the Special Rate Disability Pension and incapacity payments cover veterans who can't work.
Is TPI taxable?
No. The Disability Compensation Payment, including the Special Rate, is a non-taxable pension, and it isn't counted as income for the service pension or Centrelink income tests.
Checked against DVA's website on 25 September 2026.