The Supreme Court has ruled in favor of the military in disputes over combat pay

The Supreme Court has confirmed that a service member’s lack of reports, combat orders, or combat logs cannot serve as grounds for denying the payment of an additional bonus of 100,000 UAH for participation in combat operations.

This was reported by the Supreme Court of Ukraine.

In May 2026, the Administrative Court of Cassation within the Supreme Court issued a series of rulings in cases No. 440/17696/23, No. 620/4254/23, and No. 380/137/25, which concern the calculation of additional payments to military personnel.

The court emphasized that the preparation of documents for calculating compensation is the responsibility of military units and command, not the military personnel themselves. Therefore, violations of internal document flow or the absence of certain documents cannot deprive defenders of their right to proper payments.

The Supreme Court also noted that lower courts must independently request the necessary evidence, including combat orders, combat logs, and other documents, even if they are restricted or held by military authorities.

Separately, the court stated that the absence of personalized entries in combat logs, the loss of documents, or military units’ claims of information secrecy cannot automatically indicate that a servicemember lacks the right to additional compensation.

In its rulings, the Supreme Court overturned the previous denials and remanded the cases for a new hearing, emphasizing that the state is responsible for properly documenting the military’s participation in combat operations and for the timely payment of the stipulated monetary compensation.