The greatest potential for regional office referral will come from retirees who were initially labeled as “Level 3.”                                                                                                                                     Notification of Retroactive Entitlement                                                                            Retirees eligible for potential retroactive compensation adjustments will receive notification from their service payment center and another from VA.                                              When a retiree’s record is selected for referral to VA, the retiree will receive a letter from the payment center advising him/her of the referral and that, in most cases, payment can be expected from VA within 30 days.                                                  When automated payment is accomplished by the HINES Automation Center, the retiree will receive a letter from VA advising the retiree of the amount of the retroactive payment made.  On the back of the letter is a month-by-month explanation of how the retroactive amount was calculated, which is very similar to a “paid and due” audit by a regional office finance activity.  (See enclosure 6.)  The letters are issued to the retiree after payment has been released as a direct deposit or as a check.  The amount paid will be displayed on the Treasury Inquiry screen (TINQ) as a one-time payment.                                                                                                          Retroactive $25,000 Payments                                                            Regional offices will be advised by C&P Service when automated processing results in a payment of $25,000 or more.  C&P Service will e-mail the Service Center Manager with the name and claim number of the retiree and the amount of the payment.  Regional offices must document the claims folder so that verification of the appropriateness of the payment is of record.                                                                                                                                              Regional Office Referrals (Audit Error Worksheets)                        Records are referred to a regional office for a determination of entitlement when one or more of the following criteria are involved:                   Retiree deceased Account in suspense No master record Accounts receivable exists Account contains a withholding Invalid regional office number Negative net account Excessive pay                            These errors are all standard types of audit errors that can be processed in accordance with M21-1, Part V, Chapter 19.

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