Mild Neurocognitive Disorder

DC 9326Mental Disorders38 CFR 4.130, DC 9326

A condition involving a modest decline in mental abilities like memory, attention, and reasoning that goes beyond normal aging. The VA rates based on how these cognitive problems affect your work and social functioning.

Rating Levels

Your condition causes total impairment in your ability to work and function socially. You may be a persistent danger to yourself or others, disoriented, or have severe memory loss.

What the VA looks for

Gross impairment in thought processes or communication
Persistent delusions or hallucinations
Grossly inappropriate behavior
Persistent danger of hurting self or others
Inability to perform activities of daily living
Disorientation to time or place
Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name

Common Pitfalls

⚠Not getting neuropsychological testing to document the specific cognitive deficits — standardized testing is the strongest evidence for this diagnosis and its severity.
⚠Confusing neurocognitive disorder with TBI residuals — if related to a head injury, it may be better rated under DC 8045 (TBI). Make sure you and your examiner choose the code that best captures your impairment.
⚠Not documenting how cognitive problems affect daily activities, work performance, and safety — forgetting tasks, missing deadlines, making errors, and needing reminders all demonstrate functional impact.
⚠Not connecting to service events like head trauma, toxic exposures, or anesthesia complications — a clear nexus between a service event and cognitive decline is essential for service connection.

Related DBQ Forms

DBQ Mental Disorders (other than PTSD)
DBQ Traumatic Brain Injury

View evidence checklist →See secondary conditions →

Condition Rating Guides

Understand what the VA looks for at each rating level — loading conditions…

Rating Levels

Your condition causes total impairment in your ability to work and function socially. You may be a persistent danger to yourself or others, disoriented, or have severe memory loss.

What the VA looks for

Gross impairment in thought processes or communication
Persistent delusions or hallucinations
Grossly inappropriate behavior
Persistent danger of hurting self or others
Inability to perform activities of daily living
Disorientation to time or place
Memory loss for names of close relatives, own occupation, or own name

Common Pitfalls

⚠Not getting neuropsychological testing to document the specific cognitive deficits — standardized testing is the strongest evidence for this diagnosis and its severity.

⚠Confusing neurocognitive disorder with TBI residuals — if related to a head injury, it may be better rated under DC 8045 (TBI). Make sure you and your examiner choose the code that best captures your impairment.

⚠Not documenting how cognitive problems affect daily activities, work performance, and safety — forgetting tasks, missing deadlines, making errors, and needing reminders all demonstrate functional impact.

⚠Not connecting to service events like head trauma, toxic exposures, or anesthesia complications — a clear nexus between a service event and cognitive decline is essential for service connection.