Veterans Claims Examining
Federal headcount, average salary, length of service, and pay comparison for the Veterans Claims Examining occupation series (code 0996), drawn directly from the OPM FedScope dataset (June 2026).
The verdict
Veterans Claims Examining is a mid-sized federal occupation: 18,099 employees (0.9% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Legal and Kindred Group family. At an average salary of $92,511 it pays below the federal average of $117,339, and headcount declined 0.2% from the prior period.
- Employees
- 18,099
- Share of workforce
- 0.9%
- Avg salary
- $92,511
- Avg tenure
- 13.3 yrs
FedScope read on Veterans Claims Examining (dense series)
Federal agencies employ 18,099 people in the Veterans Claims Examining occupation (OPM code 0996), accounting for 0.9% of the total federal civilian workforce of 1,953,300 for the June 2026 reporting window. Headcount in this occupation moved down by -0.2% versus the prior period, a useful gauge for job seekers on USAJOBS trying to assess whether this role is expanding government-wide or contracting under hiring freezes and attrition.
Veterans Claims Examining pays $92,511 per year on average, moving up 0.3% from the prior period (a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change). Employees in this role stay an average of 13.3 years, a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
Code 09, the Legal and Kindred Group family, is where the federal government classifies Veterans Claims Examining alongside 17 related occupations. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Veterans Claims Examining postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Legal and Kindred Group family.
Veterans Claims Examining makes up 16.3% of the 110,958 employees across the Legal and Kindred Group family, ranking #3 of 18 occupations in that family by headcount. Its average salary ranks in the bottom half (41st percentile) of pay among Legal and Kindred Group occupations.
Salary Context
How Veterans Claims Examining pay compares to the federal average of $117,339
Occupation Average
$92,511
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-21.2%
Where Veterans Claims Examining ranks on federal pay
Its average salary of $92,511 is higher than 48% of federal occupation series (257 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Veterans Claims Examining sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; Veterans Claims Examining ranks higher than 48%.
Related Occupations in Legal and Kindred Group
10 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| General Attorney | 35,986 | $177,921 | 13.6 yrs |
| Contact Representative | 29,201 | $64,454 | 9.3 yrs |
| General Legal and Kindred Administration | 8,711 | $82,876 | 12.3 yrs |
| Paralegal Specialist | 5,165 | $107,719 | 15.8 yrs |
| Legal Assistance | 3,326 | $69,159 | 12.5 yrs |
| Hearings and Appeals | 3,231 | n/a | 15.9 yrs |
| Passport and Visa Examining | 2,035 | $92,682 | 11.3 yrs |
| Legal Instruments Examining | 1,261 | $73,021 | 11.7 yrs |
| Administrative Law Judge | 1,189 | $208,642 | 20.7 yrs |
| Claims Assistance and Examining | 925 | $67,330 | 18.9 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Veterans Claims Examining outside the Legal and Kindred Group family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (18,099 here).
Similar average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($92,511 here).
Key takeaways
- Veterans Claims Examining pays below the federal average by 21.2% ($92,511 vs $117,339 federal-wide), at the 48th percentile for pay among 541 tracked occupation series.
- A mid-sized federal occupation by headcount: 18,099 employees, 0.9% of the federal civilian workforce, and headcount declined 0.2% from the prior period.
- According to OPM FedScope June 2026, Veterans Claims Examining ranks #25 of 663 federal occupation series by headcount (the same employee_count ordering as our occupations directory).
- Veterans Claims Examining makes up 16.3% of the 110,958 employees across the Legal and Kindred Group family, ranking #3 of 18 occupations in that family by headcount.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.