Armed Forces Compensation Scheme (AFCS) calculator

What the AFCS pays

The Armed Forces Compensation Scheme makes two kinds of award. The first is a tax-free lump sum that reflects the pain and impact of the injury or illness. The amount is fixed by a tariff with 15 levels, where level 1 is the most serious and level 15 the least. A Veterans UK assessor places your condition on the tariff using nine descriptor tables that cover burns, wounds and scarring, mental disorders, physical illness, amputations, neurological damage, sensory loss, fractures and musculoskeletal injury.

The second award is the Guaranteed Income Payment, or GIP. This is a tax-free, index-linked monthly income paid for life, and it reflects long-term loss of earning capacity rather than pain and suffering. GIP is only paid on the more serious tariff levels (1 to 11), and the percentage band depends on the level. The scheme is no-fault, which means you do not have to prove anyone was to blame, only that the injury or illness was caused by service.

AFCS lump sum by tariff level

These are the tax-free lump sums on the April 2026 tariff (uprated 3.8% in line with the September 2025 CPI). Your own level is decided by an assessor from the medical evidence.

For the full 15-level table and how the descriptors work, see our AFCS explained guide.

How the Guaranteed Income Payment works

GIP is paid as a percentage of your salary at discharge: 100% on tariff levels 1 to 4, 75% on levels 5 and 6, 50% on levels 7 and 8, and 30% on levels 9 to 11. Levels 12 to 15 receive a lump sum only. An age factor is then applied, so someone injured young receives a higher monthly GIP than someone injured close to retirement, because the expected loss of earnings is longer.

If your GIP is 50% or more (tariff levels 1 to 8) you are automatically entitled to the Armed Forces Independence Payment (AFIP), which replaces Personal Independence Payment. GIP can also interact with an ill-health pension: if you receive a medical discharge pension for the same condition, that pension is credited in full against the GIP.

Who can claim, and the time limit

All regular and reserve personnel are covered, whether still serving or already left. Claims should normally be made within 7 years of the incident, of service making an existing condition worse, of first seeking medical advice for an illness, or of discharge, whichever is earliest. There are exceptions where late effects appear, so it is worth claiming when the time is right for you.

The most seriously injured serving personnel can apply for a fast payment, currently up to £64,148 (the level 8 lump sum), without waiting for the full claim to finish. You do not need a paid representative: free help is available from the Veterans Welfare Service and service charities.

AFCS or War Pension?

The dividing line is the date of the injury or illness. On or after 6 April 2005 falls under the AFCS. Before that date it falls under the older War Pension Scheme, which is assessed differently, by percentage of disablement rather than a tariff. Our AFCS vs War Pension guide explains which one covers you and whether you can hold awards under both.