The Deputy Minister of Veterans Affairs Canada reports to the Minister of Veterans Affairs who is accountable to Parliament. The Chair of the Veterans Review and Appeal Board reports to Parliament through the Minister and is accountable to the Minister for the use of the board's resources.

The Veterans Affairs Portfolio delivers two programs: The Veterans Affairs Program, delivered by Veterans Affairs Canada, provides a wide range of benefits and services principally in the areas of health care, disability pensions and income support and commemoration programming. In 2005-2006, activities were delivered by a staff complement of 3,570 full-time equivalents from a decentralized organization consisting of a Head Office in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, the National Capital Office in Ottawa, Ontario, and a national service delivery network across Canada. The Department also operates a hospital in Sainte-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, and maintains battlefield memorials in Europe.

The Veterans Review and Appeal Board Program is delivered by the Veterans Review and Appeal Board, a separate independent administrative tribunal. The Board adjudicates on the review and appeal aspects of disability pensions and hears final level appeals for War Veterans Allowance claims. The Board also has the authority to reconsider decisions at the review and appeal levels. It ensures due process through sound, timely and effective quasi-judicial adjudication in accordance with the governing legislation. The activities of the Board, delivered by 80 fulltime equivalents in 2005-2006, included 8 fulltime members in Charlottetown and 11 full-time members located in major cities across Canada. The Board holds review hearings in over 34 locations across Canada and appeal hearings primarily in Charlottetown.

The formal program structure of the Portfolio reflects the required independence between the Department and the Board as an administrative tribunal. It emphasizes the autonomy each has in representing the rights of clients and serving their needs.

Veterans Affairs Canada
Veterans Affairs Canada is made up of three branches and five organizations. Veterans Services Branch, Public Programs and Communications Branch, Corporate Services Branch and Policy, Planning and Liaison report to the Deputy Minister of VAC. The remaining four organizations, Audit and Evaluation Division, Bureau of Pensions Advocates Office of Early Conflict Resolution and Federal Healthcare Partnership report to the Associate Deputy Minister of VAC.

Audit and Evaluation Division
The mandate of the Audit and Evaluation Division is to review programs and operations and to recommend improvements. A seamless, single-window audit, evaluation and consultation service is provided.

Bureau of Pensions Advocates
The Bureau of Pensions Advocates provides free legal aid to persons who seek, through the review and appeal processes with the Veterans Review and Appeal Board, to establish claims under the Pension Act and related statues.

Corporate Services (CS) Branch
The CS Branch is responsible for ensuring the effective and efficient use and protection of the Portfolio's financial, human, information, material and information technology resources; providing Portfolio support services, e.g. records and facilities management and video conferencing; planning and execution of business resumption, security and emergency preparedness measures; processing of requests and activities related to the Access to Information Act and the Privacy Act; library services; employment equity and official languages programs; and co-ordinating locally shared services initiatives.

Federal Healthcare Partnership
The Federal Healthcare Partnership (FHP), formerly the Health Care Coordination Initiative (HCCI), was created in 1994 as a partnership of federal departments providing healthcare services to specific groups of Canadians with the goal of extending cost savings through the process of collective federal department purchasing of selective healthcare products/services.

The FHP has since evolved and, with its six permanent partner departments, agencies and organizations, is now collaboratively examining the strategic impact of various issues on the provision of health services within the jurisdiction of all of the partners. The FHP has two main goals: to achieve economies of scale while enhancing the provision of care, and to provide strategic issues leadership.

Office of Early Conflict Resolution
This office provides leadership and support to enable employees of VAC to meet the challenges facing the Portfolio and the Public Service. We promote and help maintain a work environment of mutual trust and respect where the focus is on reducing and/or resolving conflict and preventing harassment in the workplace.

Policy Planning and Liaison
This Secretariat is responsible for providing executive services to the Minister, the Deputy Minister and the Associate Deputy Minister. It is also responsible for ensuring policy consistency in internal and external policies, and liaising with Veterans' organizations, parliamentary committees, and central agencies. The Secretariat also ensures that government policy is reflected in legislation and regulations.

Also, the Secretariat supports the Portfolio by carrying out long-term, strategic and operational planning; providing advice on resource management, planning methods and practices, and departmental issues; investigating options for alternative service delivery; and coordinating the development and implementation of central agency initiatives such as Quality Service (including service standards), Sustainable Development, and producing reports supporting the Expenditure Management System.

Public Programs and Communications Branch
The Public Programs and Communications Branch is responsible for policy direction and effective management of all domestic (internal and external to the Department) and international communication programs and for keeping the memory of our Veterans' and peacekeepers' achievements and sacrifices alive for all Canadians through community engagement, public information and research, cenotaph/monument restoration of national and international memorials and cemetery maintenance.

Veterans Services (VS) Branch
The Veterans Services Branch is responsible for delivering pensions and health care, and for providing social and economic support to Veterans and qualified civilians in all regions of Canada. Health care is provided to eligible Veterans in Ste-Anne's Hospital, the only departmental hospital in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec, in contract hospital beds, in Veterans' homes, and in hospitals of choice. The Branch is also responsible for providing emergency and ongoing income support, social counselling and referral services, client counselling on disability pension applications, and adjudication of disability pension claims. It is also responsible for negotiating with the provinces and for delivering certain other centrally managed programs.

The New Veterans Charter, a comprehensive wellness package that benefits Canadian Forces Members, Veterans and their families is also the responsibility of this Branch. The package includes: rehabilitation, health benefits, job placement assistance, financial benefits and disability awards.

The Branch Head Office in Charlottetown maintains functional and line authority over program and policy development and program operations within the National Operations Division, the Program & Service Policy Division, and Regional Operations.

Veterans Review and Appeal Board
The Veterans Review and Appeal Board was created in 1995 by an Act of Parliament. The Board is an independent Board with full and exclusive jurisdiction to hear appeals from the decisions of the Minister of Veterans Affairs. The Board may affirm, vary or reverse the Minister's decisions, or refer decisions back to the Minister for reconsideration. The Board is completely independent from the Department of Veterans Affairs.

The Veterans Review and Appeal Board provides two levels of appeal on disability pension applications and the final level of appeal on allowance decisions. The Board's objective is to ensure Veterans, Canadian Forces personnel, Royal Canadian Mounted Police members, certain civilians, and/or their respective dependants receive the disability pensions and benefits to which they are entitled.