Citation Nr: 18146079 Decision Date: 10/30/18 Archive Date: 10/30/18 DOCKET NO. 13-06 983 DATE: October 30, 2018 ORDER A total rating for compensation purposes based on individual unemployability due to service-connected disabilities (TDIU) is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran’s service-connected disabilities do not prevent him from securing or following a substantially gainful occupation. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria for a TDIU have not been met. 38 U.S.C. §§ 1155, 5103, 5103A, 5107 (2012); 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.102, 3.159, 3.326(a), 4.16 (2017). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served in the U.S. Navy from May 1968 to April 1972 and in the Texas Army National Guard from June 1975 to May 1980. He served in the Republic of Vietnam. In January 2017, the Veteran was afforded a hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge sitting at the San Antonio, Texas, RO. Entitlement to TDIU. In an August 2017 Remand, the Board determined that there was an inferred claim for TDIU. See Rice v. Shinseki, 22 Vet. App. 447 (2009). VA regulations allow for the assignment of TDIU when a veteran is unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation as a result of service-connected disabilities, and the veteran has certain combinations of ratings for service connected disabilities. If there is only one such disability, that disability must be ratable at 60 percent or more. If there are two or more disabilities, there must be at least one disability ratable at 40 percent or more, and sufficient additional disability to bring the combined rating to 70 percent or more. 38 C.F.R. § 4.16(a). The Veteran is currently rated 70 percent for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and has a 90 percent combined rating. He, therefore, meets the minimum schedular requirement for TDIU. The reports of July 2010 and March 2012 VA PTSD examinations state that the Veteran was employed full-time as a computer design utilities specialist and had been for over 20 years. On his January 2013 VA Form 9, the Veteran indicated that he continued to work. A January 2014 VA treatment record states that the Veteran reported that he had decided to work until age 66. A March 2015 VA treatment record indicates that the Veteran was still working. An October 2015 VA treatment record states that the Veteran had retired. At his January 2017 Board hearing, the Veteran indicated that he retired partly due to his service connected PTSD, back, and knee disorders. In June 2018, the RO requested that the Veteran complete an Application for Increased Compensation Based on Unemployability (VA Form 21-8940) and a Request for Employment Information in Connection with Claim for Disability Benefits (VA Form 21-4192) in order to gain more information about the Veteran’s inability to work due to service-connected disabilities. The Veteran did not respond. Although the Veteran indicated at his January 2017 Board hearing that he had retired in part due to his service-connected disabilities, the record does not indicate that the Veteran is unable to work solely due to these disorders. In January 2014, the Veteran reported that he had planned to work until age 66 and then would retire. This proactive planning of his retirement date indicates that he was not forced to stop working due to service-connected disabilities. Additionally, when requested by VA to submit additional information about his inability to work due to service-connected disabilities, the Veteran did not respond. The duty to assist is a two way street. If the Veteran wishes help, he cannot passively wait for it in those circumstances where he may or should have information that is essential in obtaining the relevant evidence. Wood v. Derwinski, 1 Vet. App. 190, 193 (1991). Although the Veteran indicated at his January 2017 Board hearing that his service connected disabilities contributed to his decision to retire, there is no evidence that he is unable to work solely due to service connected disabilities. (Continued on the next page)   Without additional information about the Veteran’s employment history and inability to work due to service-connected disabilities, the Board finds that the Veteran is not unable to secure or follow a substantially gainful occupation as a result of service-connected disabilities and, therefore, TDIU is not warranted. The claim is denied. Vito A. Clementi Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans’ Appeals ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD J. E. Miller, Associate Counsel