VA Form 10-7959f-1
Foreign Medical Program Registration
You are a veteran living outside the United States and need VA to reimburse medical care for your service-connected conditions received from foreign providers.
- Who fills it
- veteran
- Journey phase
- VA Healthcare
- Estimated time
- 20-30 minutes.
- When to file
- Before seeking medical care abroad for SC conditions, or as soon as possible after establishing residence outside the U.S.
Official VA form page: https://www.va.gov/find-forms/about-form-10-7959f-1/
Gather before you start
- ▸Your VA service-connected conditions and ratings
- ▸Current foreign address
- ▸U.S. bank account for reimbursement deposits (or foreign account banking details)
- ▸VA File Number and prior rating decision documents
Attach with the form
- ▸Copy of VA rating decision showing service-connected conditions
- ▸DD-214 if not on file with VA
Section I - Veteran Identification
Blocks 1-6Name, SSN, VA File Number, DOB, foreign addressPII
Your current information including your foreign address. FMP is administered by the VA, Denver. Include both your foreign address AND a U.S. contact address if applicable.
(legal name, SSN, current foreign address)
Common mistakes
- ×Not providing a U.S. bank account for direct deposit - international wire transfers are available but slower.
Section II - Service-Connected Conditions
Blocks 7-12List of service-connected conditions for which you may seek foreign care
List all VA service-connected conditions and their disability ratings. FMP only reimburses for care related to service-connected conditions. Note whether each condition might require ongoing treatment abroad.
e.g., PTSD (50%), Lumbar DDD (20%), Right knee (10%) - will need orthopedic care for knee abroad
Common mistakes
- ×Seeking FMP reimbursement for non-SC conditions - FMP covers ONLY service-connected conditions.
- ×Not knowing that FMP reimburses at rates equivalent to U.S. Medicare reimbursement rates - some foreign medical costs may exceed what FMP reimburses.
Authority
- 38 USC 1710 - Core VA health care eligibility.
Section III - Payment Information
Blocks 13-16Banking information for reimbursementPII
Provide your U.S. or foreign bank account details for direct deposit of FMP reimbursements. Include bank name, account number, routing number (for U.S. banks) or SWIFT/IBAN (for foreign banks).
(bank name, account/routing numbers)
Common mistakes
- ×Providing incomplete bank information - a missing routing number or IBAN will delay payments.
Section IV - Certification
Blocks 17-18Veteran signature and datePII
Sign and date. After registration, use VA Form 10-7959f-2 to submit individual claims for reimbursement.
(signature/date)
Common mistakes
- ×Not knowing you need to submit Form 10-7959f-2 for each claim after registering - the registration is just the one-time setup.
Statutory and regulatory authority
- 38 CFR 17.270 - Spouse/child of veteran rated 100% P&T or who died of service-connected condition.
- 38 USC 1710 - Core VA health care eligibility.