Identity
Create your VA.gov account
Every VA website and the VA Health and Benefits app now signs in with Login.gov or ID.me. My HealtheVet and DS Logon passwords no longer open the door.
01
Use a personal email that is only yours
Do not share an inbox with a spouse for this. You will need the address years from now when a claim, a letter, or a prescription is on the line.
02
Pick Login.gov or ID.me — then finish identity proofing
Login.gov is the government's own sign-in. ID.me is the partner option, and it is the one to use if you live outside the U.S., have a PO Box on your ID, or do not have a Social Security number. The first sign-in requires a one-time identity check (about 10 minutes): government photo ID, SSN in most cases, and a smartphone camera or a video call.
03
Turn on multifactor authentication and keep a backup
An authenticator app plus backup codes. If you lose the only phone on the account, you are locked out of your own benefits until you recover it.
04
Sign in at VA.gov and look at what you already have
From one account you can file disability and health-care applications, download benefit letters, check claim status, message your care team, and pull records. If you served and never signed in, that is the first gap to close.