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      Oversight of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) – claims processing

      We are aware that the Department of Veterans’ Affairs is taking some time to process claims, and that it is currently working to improve claims processing timeframes.

      In recent years the Office has published reports following our investigations of the Department of Veterans’ Affairs.  These reports highlight areas for improvement.

      Our 2022 report the Department of Veterans’ Affairs’ communication with veterans making claims for compensation made 8 recommendations about how DVA could improve its communication with veterans, including regular updates of its website regarding average processing times for claims and improving claim prioritisation processes. DVA agreed to all 8 recommendations.

      We monitored DVA’s implementation of our recommendations to make sure they did what they said they would do. We published the results of this in a 2023 report Recommendation Implementation Report. We found that DVA had implemented our recommendations.

      The Department of Veterans’ Affairs continues to regularly publish updated claim processing timeframes on its website in line with our recommendations. DVA publishes steps veterans, or their representatives can take for urgent help.

      We are also aware of the recent Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.  A copy of the report can be found at the following link 2024 report.  The Royal Commission made a series of recommendation for improvement.