Ratings

Knee Ratings: Bending, Straightening and Instability

One knee can have more than one VA rating. Bending, straightening and instability are rated separately, but VA will not pay twice for the same problem.

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Check your own decision. Look at which diagnostic code (DC) VA used and what your exam measured. The numbers below come from the federal rule, 38 CFR 4.71a, and Board of Veterans' Appeals decisions that quote it. A rating under one code does not stop you from asking about another.

What it is

VA rates the knee in pieces. How far it bends (flexion) is one piece. How far it straightens (extension) is another. Looseness or giving way (instability) is a third. Arthritis can be a fourth. If you have more than one real problem, you may be able to get more than one rating.

How VA rates each piece

Normal knee motion is 0 degrees straight to 140 degrees bent (38 CFR 4.71).

Bending, DC 5260 (limited flexion)

Bending limited to 60 degrees: 0 percent
45 degrees: 10 percent
30 degrees: 20 percent
15 degrees: 30 percent

Straightening, DC 5261 (limited extension)

Limited to 5 degrees: 0 percent
10 degrees: 10 percent
15 degrees: 20 percent
20 degrees: 30 percent
30 degrees: 40 percent
45 degrees: 50 percent

Instability, DC 5257 (other impairment of the knee). The rule was rewritten effective 7 February 2021 and now rates a sprain or torn ligament causing ongoing (persistent) instability at 10, 20 or 30 percent, depending on what a medical provider prescribes for walking. The full tier list is at vsgsolutions.org/disabilities-veterans-forget-to-claim.

DC 5257 also has a patellar (kneecap) instability section: a diagnosed patellofemoral condition with recurrent instability after surgical repair is 20 percent when a medical provider prescribes a brace, cane or walker, and 30 percent when the prescription is a brace and either a cane or a walker. Read the full rule for anything else in that section.

Other knee codes

DC 5256 (ankylosis, a stiff, fixed knee): 30 percent if favorable, in full extension or slight flexion between 0 and 10 degrees; 40 percent in flexion between 10 and 20 degrees; 50 percent in flexion between 20 and 45 degrees; 60 percent if extremely unfavorable, in flexion at 45 degrees or more.
DC 5258 (cartilage, semilunar, dislocated): 20 percent with frequent episodes of locking, pain and effusion (fluid) into the joint.
DC 5259 (cartilage, semilunar, removed): 10 percent when symptomatic.

DC 5262 (tibia and fibula) and DC 5263 (genu recurvatum) are also in the knee and leg section. Read them in the full rule if your decision uses them.

How VA rates each piece

Bending, DC 5260: 60 degrees 0 percent; 45 degrees 10 percent; 30 degrees 20 percent; 15 degrees 30 percent. Straightening, DC 5261: 5 degrees 0 percent; 10 degrees 10 percent; 15 degrees 20 percent; 20 degrees 30 percent; 30 degrees 40 percent; 45 degrees 50 percent.38 CFR 4.71 · Page reviewed September 2026.

Can you get separate ratings?

Bending and straightening: Yes, if both limits are real. VA's General Counsel held in 2004 that separate ratings under DC 5260 and DC 5261 may be assigned for the same joint (VAOPGCPREC 9-2004).
Instability and arthritis: Yes. VA's General Counsel held in 1997 that arthritis and instability of the knee may be rated separately under DC 5003 and DC 5257 (VAOPGCPREC 23-97). Under the 1998 opinion (VAOPGCPREC 9-98), the limited motion for the arthritis rating does not have to be compensable. It must at least meet the 0 percent level. A separate arthritis rating can also rest on X-ray findings plus painful motion.
The limit: 38 CFR 4.14 says the same disability is not to be rated under different diagnoses. You need separate, not overlapping, problems.

How to ask for a change

Read your decision and find the DC number and the measured degrees.
If your knee has gotten worse, file an increase claim online with VA Form 21-526EZ.
If VA already decided and you have new and relevant evidence, a Supplemental Claim is an option.
Bring your treatment records. Ask your doctor to note range of motion, instability, braces or canes prescribed, and pain on movement.

find the DC numbermeasured degrees

VA Form 21-526EZtreatment records

Hip or ankle instead? See Hip and Ankle VA Ratings: Motion, Pain and the Exam.

Free help

An accredited representative can look at your decision for free if you use a Veterans Service Organization: Find an accredited representative (free if it is a Veterans Service Organization representative).

Where to call and where to go

Phone

VA benefits hotline, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. ET: 1-800-827-1000 (TTY: 711). Source: VA regional benefit office page and va.gov/contact-us
Veterans Crisis Line, 24/7: 988, then select 1. Source: Helpful VA phone numbers

Official pages

Sources