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VA Form 10-8678 Application for Annual Clothing Allowance
What Is VA Form 10-8678?
VA Form 10-8678, Application for Annual Clothing Allowance is a document used to apply for a clothing allowance. A clothing allowance is a one-time or yearly payment for veterans wearing a prescribed prosthetic or orthopedic appliance or using a prescribed skin medication that is damaging their clothes. Applying for clothing allowance is possible only after the veteran has applied for and claimed disability compensation.
The latest version of the form was released by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) on June 1, 2015 , with all previous editions obsolete. A VA Form 10-8678 fillable version is available for download below.
To be considered eligible for more than one clothing allowance, the veteran must wear or tear more than one type of article of their clothing or medications must irreparably damage more than one type of their clothing.
Types of clothing and garments eligible for clothing allowance include shirts, blouses, pants, skirts, shorts and similar items, which were permanently damaged by appliances or skin medications. Shoes, hats, scarves, underwear, socks, and similar garments are not included.
Items that tend damage clothing include prosthesis, rigid braces, ankle or foot orthosis (AFO) with hooks, rigid AFO, manual wheelchairs without clothing guards, specialized wheelchairs with sliding board or sliding transfer functionalities, and wheelchairs with positioning and posturing adaptations, crutches, wrist braces, prosthesis, rigid orthotics, service dogs, colostomy or ileostomy, cervical braces.
Skin medication is cream, salve, ointment, lotion, or semisolid medicine that is used to treat, prevent, heal, protect and alleviate symptoms from a skin condition. The veteran can file a claim for clothing allowance if the medication causes irreparable staining, discoloration, bleeding, and damage not removable by laundering or dry cleaning.
How to Fill Out VA Form 10-8678?
- Item 1. Provide the full name of the veteran;
- Item 2. Enter the veteran's social security number;
- Item 3. Enter the veteran's full mailing address including the ZIP code If the address has changed since the last appeal to the VA, the box in Item 3 should be checked;
- Items 4 and 4a. Enter the daytime and evening phone numbers of the veteran. Item 4b. Enter their email address;
- Item 5. Enter the calendar year the application is filed; and
- Item 6. Sign and date the form.
The next page of the form is a table for providing information about the veteran's condition and treatment they receive. If a veteran has multiple appliances or skin medications, the combination of these items causes them to replace outer garments faster than if they used a single item:
- Item 7 is for entering the type of appliances or names of medications;
- Item 8 is for listing all service-connected disabilities requiring the use of the listed appliance or skin medication;
- Item 9 requires the date the appliance or skin medication was prescribed in MMYYYY format;
- Item 10 requires entering the name and location of the VA facility issued appliance or skin medication; and
- Item 11 is for the impacted area.
The two leftmost columns of the table and Items 12-16 are for VA use only. These Items include information about the number of clothing allowances, examination or evaluation date and the name and signature of the VA official, who authorized the form with a date.
The completed VA Form 10-8678 must be signed and dated by the veteran.
Where to Mail VA Form 10-8678?
The completed VA Form 10-8678 should be submitted to the Prosthetic and Sensory Aids Service at the nearest VA medical center. The form may be presented in person or mailed. The location of the nearest VA medical center can be found through the VA website.
The form should be filed before August 1st of the benefit year for which the veteran is applying. If a claim is submitted after August 1, the veteran would receive payment the following year. If the application is approved, the veteran will receive payments between September 1 and October 31.
Download VA Form 10-8678 Application for Annual Clothing Allowance
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