5.16.6.1 Purpose of Chapter 25 of the new GARP M 2026

This policy explains how Chapter 25 of the Guide to Determining Impairment and Compensation 2026 (GARP M 2026) must be applied when a veteran claims Permanent Impairment (PI) compensation under the Military Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 2004 (MRCA) from 1 July 2026.   

Chapter 25 of the GARP M 2026 applies where a veteran has an old Veterans’ Entitlements Act 1986 (VEA) and/or the Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation (Defence-related Claims) Act 1988 (DRCA) accepted condition and has previously determined impairment ratings in respect of those conditions under those Acts. Chapter 25 of the GARP M 2026 also applies to veterans who, in relation to a MRCA PI claim before 1 July 2026, had been assessed under an earlier version of Chapter 25 of the GARP M. 

Under the changes to veterans’ portfolio legislation which commenced on 1 July 2026, the VEA and the DRCA closed to new claims for compensation. Any worsening of old VEA or DRCA conditions can instead be compensated for PI purposes under the MRCA. Chapter 25 facilitates this and prescribes the method for calculating the compensation payable under the MRCA in respect of the increased degree of a veteran’s impairment from 1 July 2026, in relation to any service-related condition.

To ensure claims for PI compensation from 1 July 2026 are assessed and determined correctly, the new GARP M 2026 contains a modified Chapter 25. This modified Chapter 25 still contains a seven-step method, applied in the order given, as well as the same offsets at the later steps. However, Chapter 25 now calculates the amount of PI compensation payable for the increase in impairment from the baseline impairment rating. Chapter 25 does this by working out the amount of compensation notionally payable for all service-related conditions (using new medical evidence) and subtracting what is notionally payable for the baseline impairment rating (if that baseline impairment rating were compensable under the MRCA). 

Delegates should be mindful that for veterans with service exclusively from 1 July 2004 (and therefore have only ever had coverage under the MRCA), Chapter 25 of the GARP M 2026 (and earlier versions of Chapter 25) does not apply.

A copy of the new GARP M 2026 is available on the Federal Register of Legislation at www.legislation.gov.au/F2026L00595/asmade/text

Application of earlier versions of the GARP M

The version of the GARP M in force at the time of the original assessment leading to the original determination must continue to apply until the claim is finally determined, including internal reconsiderations and external appeals. For clarity, the GARP M 2016 will continue to apply in respect of all MRCA PI claims made before 1 July 2026.