No cost to you

Wounded Warrior Project

Mental health care, peer support, career coaching, and VA-accredited help with your claim. Here is what they run, who can register, and the one eligibility rule that decides it.

← Back to vsgsolutions.org Register with WWP
Read the eligibility rule first, before you get invested. To register with WWP you must have served on or after 11 September 2001 — active duty, transitioning service member, National Guard or Reserve — with an honorable discharge, or be currently serving in good standing.

General under honorable, or other than honorable? You may still be eligible — WWP reviews those case by case — but WWP says instant verification excludes some of those discharges, so expect to upload documents and wait for a person to review it (WWP says that takes 5 to 7 business days).

You do not need a combat deployment, a VA rating, or a physical injury. WWP's own words: they support warriors with or without physical or combat injuries.

If you served before 9/11 you cannot register as a Warrior — but do not read that as nobody will help you. WWP's registration page is for post-9/11 service, and I could not confirm what WWP offers pre-9/11 veterans today. Call the Resource Center on 888-997-2586 and ask.
Claims help

Benefits Services — free, accredited

WWP has accredited National Service Officers who can represent you on a VA claim.

They are the real thing. Wounded Warrior Project holds VA power-of-attorney code 00V in VA's own accreditation records. You can verify that yourself, and you should verify anybody who offers to help with your claim, at va.gov — find a representative.
  • Disability compensation
  • PACT Act — toxic exposure benefits
  • Special Monthly Compensation
  • Veterans Pension
  • Decision reviews and appeals
  • Survivor benefits, including burial
  • And they can point you to your state veterans affairs office for state benefits
WWP also lists 904.405.1213 as an alternate Resource Center number
Never pay to file your original claim. Accredited VSO representatives — including WWP's National Service Officers — cannot charge you anything, ever. Accredited attorneys and claims agents may legally charge a fee, but only for work after VA issues notice of its initial decision, and VA presumes a fee reasonable only up to 20% of past-due benefits (38 CFR 14.636). Anyone charging you before an initial decision, or anyone not VA-accredited at all, is operating outside the rules.
★ Free before the first decision. Always.
Claims help

The other benefits they will work

  • VR&E — Veteran Readiness and Employment, Chapter 31
  • Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA, Chapter 35)
  • CHAMPVA — health coverage for your dependents
  • VA life insurance
  • Automobile allowance and adaptive equipment
  • Specially Adapted Housing (SAH) grant
  • Special Home Adaptation (SHA) grant
  • VA clothing allowance
  • Caregiver stipend — the Program of Comprehensive Assistance for Family Caregivers (PCAFC)
  • Home loan Certificate of Eligibility and funding fee exemption
  • Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33), including transferring benefits to a spouse or child — Transfer of Education Benefits (TEB)
One thing they do not do: WWP's Benefits Services does not handle Social Security Disability Insurance. That is a different agency and a different process.
★ One call covers a lot of ground.
Mental & brain health

Warrior Care Network

A two-week accelerated brain health program at a top academic medical center.

  • Treats PTSD, TBI, military sexual trauma, substance use disorder and related conditions
  • Roughly 50+ hours of treatment condensed into two weeks, in a cohort, 8am to 5pm
  • Not inpatient
  • Treatment, travel and meals are 100% covered. Insurance is not required
  • If substance use is part of it, you must be able to safely reduce alcohol or drug use and commit to abstinence while in the program — expect to be screened on this
The four partner centers: Emory Healthcare Veterans Program (Atlanta) · Massachusetts General Hospital Home Base Program (Boston) · Rush University Medical Center Road Home Program (Chicago) · UCLA Health Operation Mend (Los Angeles)
★ Two weeks. Fully paid.
Mental & brain health

Project Odyssey

A twelve-week program that begins with a five-day mental health retreat.

  • The retreat runs in a workshop-style format, using adventure-based learning with nature as a backdrop
  • After the retreat you keep working with WWP across the rest of the twelve weeks
  • Built around coping skills, communication and personal goals
  • No cost — including travel, food and lodging
★ The retreat is the start, not the whole thing.
Emotional support

WWP Talk

Non-clinical support over the phone. Same day, same time, every week.

  • You are paired with a WWP Talk Partner
  • Weekly call, roughly twenty minutes
  • Goal-setting and a plan you build together
  • Not therapy, not clinical — a consistent person who calls
★ One call a week. That's it.
Connection

Alumni Connection and Peer Support

  • Alumni Connection Program — in-person and virtual events for you and your Family, to meet other veterans and Family members inside and outside your local area
  • WWP Peer Support Groups — available across the nation, not just near a WWP office. A judgment-free room to share what you are carrying
If the thing you miss most is the people you served with, this is the part of WWP to start with.
★ A group that has your back.
Career

Warriors to Work

Career coaching into the civilian workforce.

  • Career counseling
  • Resume work
  • Interview preparation
  • Salary negotiation
★ Free coaching, real jobs.
Health

Physical Health & Wellness

For pain, sleep problems and confidence.

  • Coaching on movement and fitness
  • Nutritional education
  • Goal-setting and skill-building for long-term change
WWP also runs Adaptive Sports, Soldier Ride, the Independence Program, Financial Readiness and Family Support. Ask the Resource Center what fits your situation.
★ Start where you are.
How to start

Register — here is the actual path

  1. Go to woundedwarriorproject.org/programs/wwp-registration — type the address, do not search for it
  2. Choose Warrior Registration, or Family Registration if you are a Family member, caregiver or support person 18 or over. A Family member can register without the warrior registering first
  3. Verify. You can use the instant verification with an ID.me or Login.gov account, which checks your service dates against DoD records. Otherwise you submit a form and a person reviews it
  4. Once registered, ask for Benefits Services — or call the Resource Center and ask to be referred
  5. An accredited National Service Officer reaches out to you
Type the address, don't search it. Paid claims consultants and lookalike sites buy those exact search terms. WWP itself publishes a warning about predatory claims-assistance operations. Free accredited help exists — there is no reason to pay anyone a cut of your back pay.
Resource Center: 888.WWP.ALUM — 888-997-2586 — Monday to Friday, 9am to 9pm Eastern
Live chat: Monday to Friday, 9am to 7pm Eastern
Email: resourcecenter@woundedwarriorproject.org
★ Free of cost. Always.

Official links

Related: How A VA Disability Claim Actually Works · Getting Mental Health Support · Free Legal Help for Veterans How accredited representatives are trained and how to check one: who can legally help with your VA claim.