Photo: General Staff
The defense forces have updated the mechanism for calculating additional monetary rewards for servicemen. The innovations clearly define who exactly has the right to payments, which documents confirm this and in what terms.
Rubryka writes about this, referring to Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.
What legal documents regulate payments
The amount of new combat payments has been determined Resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers No. 768 from June 12, 2026.
The mechanism of their calculation is established by the order of the Ministry of Defense No. 232 of June 29, which amended the Procedure for the payment of financial support (order of the Ministry of Defense No. 260 of 07.06.2018).
The basic monetary support does not change
Salary, salary according to military rank, seniority allowance and other permanent components of financial support remain unchanged.
New payments are added to the existing system.
Photo: Ministry of Defense
Additional combat rewards and conditions for completing tasks
The new system provides for several types of monthly additional rewards – from 10,000 to 170,000 hryvnias – the size of which is determined by the nature and place of combat missions.
Additional remuneration for participation in hostilities is UAH 100,000/month
It is paid in proportion to the time of participation to those who directly participate in hostilities, being in the areas of their implementation, and perform combat (special) tasks on the following grounds:
- conducting hostilities on the contact line in depth up to and including the battalion;
- detection of enemy air targets in the areas of hostilities;
- flights in the airspace of regions where hostilities are taking place;
- fire damage to the enemy as part of units of missile troops and artillery or air defense;
- actions on enemy territory;
- fire damage to air and sea targets of the enemy;
- withdrawal of aircraft from under attack with take-off;
- actions of ships, boats, vessels in sea and river water areas outside the internal water areas of ports and base points;
- medical personnel of medical units and units in combat areas;
- repelling an armed attack on security facilities and liberating such facilities;
- demining in the places of assigned tasks in accordance with combat orders.
The payment is extended to a wide range of specialties – from infantry and reconnaissance to ship crews, medics and sappers – according to a single criterion: direct presence in the area of hostilities and performance of tasks under combat orders.
Payment of UAH 50,000 – control points
According to the new version of the Procedure, a payment of UAH 50,000/month (proportional to time) is awarded to military personnel who perform tasks at the control points of brigades, centers, regiments, combined units, battalions and detachments. from which operational (combat) management of units conducting military (combat) operations in the area of their conduct is directly carried out.
Innovation:
Attaching subordinate units to the area of hostilities. According to the new norm, the criterion is not the location of the headquarters itself, but where the units under its command conduct combat operations. The headquarters of the brigade, deployed outside the area of direct hostilities, but which carries out the combat management of the units fighting in this area, has a basis for 50,000 hryvnias.
Exclusion of security and security personnel. Security, security and service units, which are part of the specified control points, do not receive payment.
For headquarters above brigade level (departments of the headquarters of the groups) the right to payment depends on inclusion in a separate list approved by the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces or the Chief of the General Staff of the Armed Forces in agreement with the Ministry of Defense. Inclusion in the list is not automatic.
Payment for combat (special) tasks 30,000 UAH/month
For the performance of combat (special) tasks according to combat orders (orders), in particular:
- collective training during the restoration of combat capability as part of the reserve of the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces;
- management of troop groups within the deployed command points of the General Staff;
- working groups within the regions where hostilities are taking place, as determined by the Commander-in-Chief or the Chief of the General Staff;
- demining outside the areas of hostilities;
- comprehensive provision of active groups directly in the areas of hostilities;
- anti-aircraft cover and ground defense of critical infrastructure facilities outside military towns.
The pay covers a wide range of tasks – from rehabilitating reserves to rear air defense – and is a basic combat allowance for those operating outside the area of direct contact with the enemy, but performing tasks that directly support the conduct of combat operations.
Rear allowance 10,000 UAH/month
New rear allowance (additional remuneration), introduced by Resolution No. 768. It is paid in proportion to the time of service duties to all who do not receive any of the above allowanceswith the following exceptions – is not calculated:
- to those who are on vacation with retention of health insurance – for the duration of the vacation;
- enlisted at the disposal of commanders or dismissed from positions (except for temporary performance of duties);
- cadets of educational military units and military educational institutions;
- seconded for training to training military units;
- included in the variable composition of reserve units and reserve companies.
The rear allowance is the minimum guaranteed level of additional remuneration for all personnel regardless of the existence of a contract that actually carries the service – except for those categories whose stay in the unit is of a temporary or training nature.
The principle of competition of payments
If a serviceman has the right to several payments from the 100K/50K/30K/10K scale at the same time, the larger one is calculated per day. Payment of UAH 10,000 is intended exclusively for those who do not have grounds for any of the higher amounts.
Payments to instructors directly in military units
Separately from payments to teachers of educational units and military universities (Decision No. 168), a scale was introduced for instructors who work directly in combat military units:
- UAH 25,000/month– commanders (heads) of instructor units;
- UAH 15,000/month– instructor staff with a basic level of sergeant staff training and a basic level of instructor training;
- UAH 25,000/month – instructor staff with an average level of sergeant staff training and an increased level of instructor training;
- UAH 30,000/month – instructor staff with a higher level of sergeant staff training and an academic level of instructor training;
- UAH 30,000/month – instructor staff of instructor units (not lower than the basic level of training), which has been granted the status of a participant in hostilities.
The payment is accrued from the day of entry into the performance of duties based on the order of the unit commander and confirmation of training with relevant documents (order, order, schedule of classes, log of combat training).
Zonal rewards – 170,000 and 70,000 UAH
These additional payments are tied solely to the distance from the battle line at which tasks are performed and are calculated in proportion to the number of actual days spent in the relevant zone.
UAH 170,000/month proportionally – for the performance of tasks:
- at a distance of platoon reference point including (on the line or in attack/counterattack/counterattack);
- on the temporarily occupied territory of Ukraine;
- on the territory between the positions of the Defense Forces and the positions of the enemy;
- on enemy territory.
70,000 hryvnias/month proportionally – for performing tasks at a distance of up to company support point including.
If a serviceman was in different districts during the month, payments are calculated for each district in proportion to the corresponding days and added up.
Confirmation: a combat order (order), a log of combat operations or a combat report, a unit commander’s report on the performance of tasks by each serviceman. One day is a full calendar day (00:00–24:00), regardless of the number of engagements per day. If the task was performed within two days, it is counted as two days. Payment orders are issued by the 5th of the current month based on the accounting data for the previous month.
Rewards for assault actions – 40,000 and 20,000 UAH per day
These rewards are calculated depending on the nature of the assault actions:
- UAH 40,000/day– for an assault with the capture of positions directly on the line of contact or in the depth of the enemy’s defense.
- UAH 20,000/day– for the recovery (return) of positions captured by infiltrated enemy groups, in the depth of one’s own defense.
- If there are reasons for both rates in one day, the higher rate is paid (40,000 UAH).
These payments have a more complicated verification process. The commander of the military unit submits a request to the military management body to confirm the performance of the corresponding combat (special) tasks. Documents confirming their execution (battle order, log of combat operations, combat debriefing, report of the unit commander with operation indicators, name list of participants) are stored in the military unit and are the basis for preparing a petition. The military administration body considers the request during three days and issues a confirmation document. Only after that, a payment order is issued in the military unit.
Additional reward for capture – 100,000 UAH
For each captured prisoner of war – UAH 100,000 per unit (group) that directly carried out the capture. It is distributed among the participants, taking into account the personal contribution of each.
Confirmation: a log of combat operations, a combat report with the number of captured, a copy of the list and act of acceptance and transfer of prisoners, a report of the unit commander, a list of names of participants. The unit commander issues an order for payment within three days of receiving the documents.
Additional reward for a confirmed melee result
UAH 15,000 is an additional reward for the unit (group), which is calculated based on the results of the verification of the combat mission in shooting or hand-to-hand combat. Payment is made only after confirmation of the grounds specified in the Procedure, in particular, mandatory video recording.
The payment has a separate confirmation channel through ICS “Delta”: the authorized person of the unit enters data (unit, names and positions of participants, number of destroyed, coordinates, date and time, video materials, data on the means of defeat). Responsible persons of the Innovation Development Fund verify the information during 72 hours. Based on the verification results, the Ministry of Defense forms an automatic report, based on which the unit commander issues an order within three days.
The general limit of combat payments is UAH 460,000 per month
The limit of UAH 460,000 applies exclusively combat payments and is calculated as the sum of three categories:
- UAH 100,000 – for direct participation in hostilities (Resolution No. 168);
- 170,000 or 70,000 UAH – zonal payment (resolution No. 768);
- 40,000 or 20,000 hryvnias × the number of assault days (Decision No. 768).
If the sum of these three categories exceeds UAH 460,000 per month, exactly UAH 460,000 is charged.
Beyond the limit, the following are charged separately:
- basic financial support (position salary, salary by rank, allowances);
- one-time financial assistance for signing the first contract;
- bonus for capture (100,000 UAH for each captive);
- bonus for destroying enemy manpower (15,000 UAH for each destroyed).
Thus, the real monthly payment of a front-line serviceman consists of the basic health insurance, combat payments within the limit of UAH 460,000 and performance bonuses added beyond the limit – and does not have a fixed ceiling.
Who and when confirms the right to payments
General principle: confirmation is carried out on the basis of primary combat documents – orders, combat logs, combat reports, reports of unit commanders. The more specific the payment, the more complex the chain of verification: from the unit commander’s order (zonal payments 170K/70K) to a three-day review by the military command body (assault) and a 72-hour verification through the Delta system (destruction of manpower).
For those posted to other units, the payment is announced by an order at the place of regular service – on the basis of an official notification from the unit where the task was actually performed.
The new system of payments – from the rear allowance to assault daily allowances and performance bonuses – forms a single mechanism in which the size of the reward increases in proportion to the risk and the nature of the tasks performed.
