Financial assistance to the families of fallen servicemen: how it is carried out and who is entitled to receive it

One of the most painful issues that currently exists in connection with military operations in Ukraine is the death of a serviceman. It is difficult to imagine the depth of pain and despair faced by the family of the fallen hero, because all those who are currently defending the country are heroes. Trying to at least somehow compensate for the loss and provide material support to the families and relatives of deceased servicemen, the state implemented the payment of monetary compensation.

Lawyers of the “Repeshko and Partners” Bar Association comment on how monetary assistance is provided to the families of fallen servicemen.

According to the resolution of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine No. 168 of February 28, 2022, a one-time financial aid in the amount of 15,000,000 hryvnias is paid to the families of fallen servicemen, which is distributed in equal shares to all recipients provided for in Article 16-1 of the Law of Ukraine “On Social and Legal protection of military personnel and members of their families”, except for citizens of the Russian Federation or the Republic of Belarus and persons permanently residing in the territories of these countries, persons convicted of treason, collaborative activity, assistance to the aggressor state. In accordance with these regulations, the right to receive one-time cash assistance is available to:

• children, including adopted children, conceived during the life of the deceased (deceased) person and born after his death, as well as children in respect of whom the deceased (deceased) person was deprived of parental rights during his lifetime;
• widow (widower);
• parents (adoptive parents) of the deceased (deceased) person, if they were not deprived of parental rights in relation to him or their parental rights were restored at the time of his death (death);
• grandchildren of the dead (deceased) person, if at the time of his death (death) their parents died (deceased);
• a woman (man) with whom (with whom) the deceased (deceased) person lived in the same family, but were not married to each other or in any other marriage, provided that this fact was established by a court decision that entered into force ;
• Dependents of a deceased (deceased) person, defined in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On pension provision of persons released from military service and certain other persons”.

In the event of the death of a serviceman, the specified persons will receive monetary assistance in the amount of 15,000,000 hryvnias, which will be distributed in equal shares to all those who are legally and de facto on the specified list.

When inheriting by law, the property passes to the heirs specified in the law in accordance with the established order. Grounds for inheritance can be marriage, family or family relations, adoption, being dependent on the testator for at least five years before his death. It is impossible to expand the circle of persons who can be heirs by law. In this regard, it follows that the civil legislation establishes five lines of heirs by law. According to Article 1261 of the Civil Code of Ukraine, the children of the testator, including those born after his death, the parents of the deceased, and the surviving spouse have the right to inherit. The second tier includes the testator’s brothers and sisters, his paternal and maternal grandparents. In the third place, the right to inherit belongs to the testator’s uncle and aunt. Persons who lived with the testator in the same family for at least five years before the opening of the inheritance belong to the heirs who have the right to inherit in the fourth place. In the fifth place, dependents of the testator who were not members of his family, as well as other relatives of the testator up to the sixth degree of consanguinity, receive the inheritance. At the same time, grandchildren (great-grandchildren), great-grandmother, great-grandfather, nephews of the testator are not included in any of the queues. One cannot draw an unequivocal conclusion that they are not called for inheritance under any circumstances. The above-mentioned persons are the heirs, if at the time of opening the inheritance there is no living relative who would be the heir. They will inherit the share that would have belonged to him if he had been alive. Such an inheritance is an inheritance by right of representation.

It is important to understand that each subsequent line of heirs by law receives the right to inherit in the absence of the heirs of the previous line, the removal of such heirs from inheritance, the rejection of the inheritance by all the heirs of the previous line or refusal to accept it by submitting the appropriate statement of refusal to the notary at the place of opening of the inheritance. However, the law makes it possible to change the sequence of obtaining the right to inherit by concluding and notarizing a contract between the interested heirs. It must be concluded after the opening of the inheritance and must not violate the rights of the heir who does not participate in it and the heirs who have the right to a mandatory share of the inheritance. Such heirs include: minor, minor or adult disabled children of the testator, disabled parents of the testator, disabled husband (wife) who survived the deceased.

Thus, the woman (man) with whom (with whom) the deceased person lived in the same family, but were not married to each other or in any other marriage, provided that this fact was established by a court decision that gained legal validity forces belonging to the fourth line of inheritance by law. This is what people usually call “civil marriage”. Never and under no circumstances is a “civil wife/husband” equated to a wife/husband under an official marriage according to the rules of inheritance law. Even after receiving a decision to establish the fact of living in the same family as husband and wife, the specified person will have the right to receive the one-time cash benefit specified in the decision, but will not be considered a first-line heir. Only the fourth, if it’s her turn.

The situation is similar with the dependents of the deceased person, determined in accordance with the Law of Ukraine “On pension provision of persons released from military service and certain other persons”. Such persons are family members of the deceased who were dependent on him, if they were fully dependent on him or received help from him, which was a constant and main source of livelihood for them. As heirs, they will be fifth in line.

According to the current legislation, inheritance is possible both by law and by will (personal disposition of a person).

Respecting the right of a serviceman to dispose of funds that will be paid by the state after his death, on March 29, 2024, amendments to the legislation entered into force (Law 3515-IX of December 9, 2023), which introduce the concept of “personal disposal” in relation to monetary assistance that is paid after death of a serviceman.

Therefore, a military serviceman, a conscript or a reservist, has the right to draw up in writing, in an arbitrary form, a personal order in the event of his death (death) on the payment of a one-time cash benefit to a person (persons) of his choice, determining the amount of the share of such persons in percentage (hereinafter – personal order).

The military unit commander or a notary certifies the authenticity of a military serviceman’s signature on a personal order. In order to avoid questions and misunderstandings, one should still contact a notary on this issue, but understanding the complexity of the situation and finding servicemen on duty, the legislator allowed such an alternative. Even if the personal order has already been certified by the commander of the military unit, at the first opportunity we recommend that a similar order be duplicated by a notary public.

The original of the personal order is kept in the relevant district (city) territorial centers of staffing and social support at the place of registration of the place of residence or at the place of conscription (acceptance) for military service of such a person, if such conscription for military service was carried out not at the place of registration of the place of residence of the conscript or reservist

It should be noted that a serviceman, conscript or reservist, called up for training and special meetings or to serve in the military reserve, has the right to cancel a personal order or make a new one at any time. At the same time, each new personal order cancels the validity of the previous one.

Thus, a serviceman can make an unlimited number of personal orders and change them at least every day – this is not prohibited by law. However, it is forbidden to disclose the content of a personal order until the fact of death (death) of the person who made it is established. This norm was introduced to exclude influence on the will of a serviceman, including through blackmail and threats. In essence, the indicated “personal disposition” is similar to a will, with the difference that it concerns only one-time monetary assistance. In the presence of a personal order, the right to appoint and receive a one-time monetary aid is available to the persons in whose favor such a personal order has been drawn up, in the amount of the share specified in such an order in percentage terms.

Regardless of the content of the personal order, the right to appoint and receive one-time cash assistance is available to:

• minors, minors, adult disabled children,
• invalid widow (widower)
• disabled parents of the dead (deceased) person

in the amount of 50 percent of the share that would belong to each of them in the event of the appointment and payment of a one-time cash benefit in the absence of a personal order.

As you can see, the legislator protected the interests of the most vulnerable close relatives of the serviceman by introducing an analogue of “mandatory fate” in inheritance by law. This is of great importance, because taking into account that the circle of persons entitled to a one-time financial aid does not coincide with the circle of heirs according to the law, hypothetically, a military serviceman could leave all funds in the amount of UAH 15,000,000 to his civilian wife, leaving nothing to minor children.

If one of the persons specified in the personal order refuses to appoint and receive a one-time monetary assistance, as well as if one of such persons has not exercised his right to appoint and receive a one-time monetary assistance within the period established by law, his share is distributed among others by persons who have the right to appoint and receive one-time cash assistance, in equal shares.

Refusal to appoint and receive one-time monetary assistance on behalf of minors, minor children of the deceased person, as well as incapacitated persons and persons whose civil capacity is limited, who have the right to appoint and receive one-time monetary assistance, is not allowed.

Persons who are entitled to a one-time financial aid can refuse to receive it by submitting an application, the authenticity of the signature on which is notarized. Persons who have the right to receive one-time monetary assistance provided for by this Law may exercise it within three years from the date of such right.

By the way, the rank and file members of the civil protection service and police officers also have the right to make a personal order in writing in an arbitrary form in the event of their death (death) to pay a one-time monetary benefit to a person (persons) of their choice. Corresponding changes have already entered into force in relevant laws.

In general, changes to the legislation in this part are perceived quite positively, as they expand the rights of military personnel and guarantee respect for their expression of will. However, it is not yet clear from a practical point of view whether it will be possible to declare a personal order invalid in a court of law by analogy with a will. The fact is that the circumstances under which a personal order can be signed are very different. For example, a serviceman, being in an extremely serious condition after being wounded, under the influence of various medical drugs, made a certain personal order. Could he be aware of his actions at that time? Did the commander who witnessed the order really understand it correctly, taking into account the condition and nature of the wound? These and many similar questions have yet to be answered by the courts.