BVA9505902 
DOCKET NO.  93-11 101     )       DATE
          )
          )

On appeal from the decision of the
Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Office in Huntington,
West Virginia

THE ISSUE

Entitlement to a waiver of the recovery of an overpayment of
Department of Veterans Affairs compensation benefits.

REPRESENTATION

Appellant represented by: Veterans of Foreign Wars of the
United States

ATTORNEY FOR THE BOARD

R. J. Rolfsen, Jr., Counsel

REMAND

The veteran served on active duty from March 1968 to March 1969
and from September 1990 to June 1991.

Initially, the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) finds that the
veteran's claim is "well grounded" within the meaning of 38
U.S.C.A. § 5107 (West 1991).  Therefore, the Board has a duty to
assist the veteran in order to ensure that all relevant evidence
has been properly developed.  Since all relevant evidence has not
been properly developed, a remand is necessary.

The veteran's representative has noted that the veteran has not
submitted a financial status report and has requested that the
case be remanded for said report to be furnished.  Although the
Board notes that such report was requested in December 1992,
since an up-to-date financial status report is necessary to
determine whether collection of the overpayment would defeat the
purpose of the compensation benefits or result in an undue
hardship on the part of the appellant, 38 C.F.R. § 1.965(a)
(1994), an additional attempt to obtain a copy of said report is
warranted.

Under these circumstances, this case is remanded for the
following action:

The Huntington, West Virginia, Department
of Veterans Affairs (VA) Committee on
Waivers and Compromises (COWC) should
contact the veteran and request that he
complete and submit a copy of an up-to-date
financial status report.

Following the completion of the requested development, the COWC
should review the case.  If the claim remains denied, the case
should be returned to the Board following appropriate appellate
processing.  No action is required by the veteran until he
receives further notice.  No indication is made by this remand as
to the outcome warranted in this case.

          EUGENE A. O'NEILL
          Member, Board of Veterans' Appeals

The Board of Veterans' Appeals Administrative Procedures
Improvement Act, Pub. L. No. 103-271, § 6, 108 Stat. 740, ___
(1994), permits a proceeding instituted before the Board to be
assigned to an individual member of the Board for a
determination.  This proceeding has been assigned to an
individual member of the Board.

Under 38 U.S.C.A. § 7252 (West 1991), only a decision of the
Board of Veterans' Appeals is appealable to the United States
Court of Veterans Appeals.  This remand is in the nature of a
preliminary order and does not constitute a decision of the Board
on the merits of your appeal.  38 C.F.R. § 20.1100(b) (1994).