Where can service members find out about payments from their local community

Did you know that service members or their family members may be eligible for financial assistance from their local community? What kind of payments are available, and how can they apply for them?

All this information can be found in a guide prepared by the Office of the Military Ombudsman.

Who is eligible for these payments?

Many territorial communities have their own financial support programs for service members, ranging from several thousand to tens of thousands of hryvnias. These may include payments to mobilized service members and those who have entered into military service under contract, as well as assistance in cases of injury, for medical treatment, rehabilitation, and other needs. Communities also provide support to the families of fallen, captured, and missing service members.

At the same time, information about these programs is scattered across dozens of websites, and in some cases it can only be found in decisions adopted by local councils.

How was the guide created and what information does it contain?

The idea of collecting and organizing information for each community came from Serhii Breus, Chief Specialist of the Department for Ensuring the Protection of Service Members’ Rights. During his visits to military units and training centers, where he delivers an adaptation course on legal awareness, Serhii noticed that most recruits were unaware of local support programs.

“To prepare this guide, we had to contact regional military administrations and communities, search for and review decisions of city and settlement councils, and update information about payments. As far as I know, no one had previously brought all this data together in one place. Service members no longer need to search for information or analyze regulations on their own. They can find their region, district, and community and immediately see what assistance they are entitled to and where they need to apply,” said Serhii Breus.

The guide also contains information about support programs offered by communities from temporarily occupied territories that continue to operate in territory controlled by Ukraine.

Please note: payment amounts and eligibility conditions change periodically, so we will regularly update the information.

We are sharing the guide at this link so that anyone who needs it can use it.

At the same time, we call on communities to provide as much support as possible to service members and their families — to expand financial support programs, provide information about available payments, and help with the application process. It is important that defenders and their loved ones know about the assistance available from their communities and can receive it without unnecessary difficulties.