Find missing service records and gaps in a VA file

2 kinds of gaps

A VA file can be missing records in 2 ways.

The app only builds the list from records that point to other records. If nothing in the file refers to a visit, the app cannot know it happened.

Use the missing records list

1. Open the case. On the Overview, find the Needs attention card. It says how many records are missing.
2. Open the list. It has 3 tabs: Outstanding, Located and Dismissed.
3. Use the Type menu to narrow it, for example to imaging or consult. Ordered shows items that were ordered with no result on file.
4. Open a provider group. Items are grouped by provider, so VA clinics and private doctors sit apart.
5. Where you see "Possible match found", answer Yes, this is it or Not a match.

The list costs no credits. See work through the missing records list for every step.

Find years with no service records

Service treatment records are often thin or missing for some years. Check the service period on its own.

1. On the Records tab, open the filters.
2. Set Date From and Date To to the service dates you confirmed.
3. Read down the list. Note any long stretch with no records.
4. Open the Timeline tab. The month strip at the top shows how many events fall in each month. Empty months stand out.
5. Pick Date by date to step through the service period 1 date at a time.

See filter and group the documents index and read the medical chronology.

Find gaps in care after service

A long break in treatment can matter when you look at whether symptoms carried on after service. Use the same steps with a date range after discharge. Filter by Facility to see VA care and private care apart.

Mark each gap you find. Add a note to the record on either side of the gap, so the gap shows in the chronology PDF and in exports. See add flags, highlights and notes.

Ask the records about gaps

You can also open the Q&A pane in the case and type in the box "Ask about this case". Each answer has numbered citations to the pages. For example:

• "Which records refer to a hearing test that is not in the file?"
• "List every sick call note during service, by date."
• "Is there any record of back pain between discharge and the first VA visit?"

Check each answer against its source page. See check any fact against its source page.

Request the missing records

• Press Request from provider on 1 item, or Request all from provider for a whole group.
• The app opens your own email program with a drafted request. It does not send it for you.
• Press Export for an Excel file of the list.

The app does not request records from the VA or from the service branch. You do that through the usual channels.

You can also write a Missing Records & Gap Analysis report. It lists outstanding records by custodian and comes with an Excel download. See which reports fit a VA claim.

Read more about VA C-file review.

Only VA-accredited attorneys, agents and Veterans Service Organizations may help prepare and present VA claims for a fee. Medrecords AI is a records tool for them and their staff.

Medrecords AI organizes and cites the records. Its output is not a medical or legal opinion and does not replace your expert.

Related help

• Review a VA disability claim in Medrecords AI
• Upload a C-file and find each kind of record
• Work through the missing records list
• Add records to an existing case

Facts checked against the Medrecords AI app code on 2026-10-24.