Servicemen who voluntarily left military unit after November 29 cannot return to service under simplified procedure through Army+ – Defense Ministry

Servicemen who for the first time voluntarily left a military unit after November 29 cannot return to service under a simplified algorithm through the Army+ application.

The Ministry of Defense has informed about this, the Ukrainian News agency reports.

"Servicemen who for the first time voluntarily left a military unit have until March 1, 2025, to return to service without criminal liability and transfer to another unit. However, this simplified algorithm does not apply to servicemen who voluntarily left a military unit after November 29, 2024. Such servicemen, even if this is their first voluntary abandonment of a military unit, cannot return to service and be released from criminal liability under a quick simplified algorithm," the message says.

Servicemen who voluntarily left a military unit after November 29 must go through a general procedure, which includes:

obtaining written consent from the commander of the unit that the serviceman has voluntarily left, or from the reserve battalion where the serviceman will be sent for the period of the service resumption;

conducting a criminal investigation;

making a decision by the court based on the prosecutor's motion on whether or not to release the serviceman from liability.

Only after the court's decision does the military begin to resume service, in particular, returning monetary payments and social guarantees that were suspended after the commander filed an application about the voluntary abandonment of a military unit.

Servicemen who voluntarily left a military unit after November 29 may wait several months for the service resumption, and until then they do not receive monetary benefits or other guarantees.

For the servicemen who voluntarily left the unit before November 29, and this is their first voluntary abandonment of a military unit, there is still an opportunity to return to service by March 1, 2025 according to a simplified algorithm and resume service within three days.

To do this, in the Army+ application, you can submit a report "Return to service after a voluntary abandonment of a military unit" and attach a letter of recommendation from the unit that needs the serviceman. Each stage of return is accompanied by a separate notification in the Army+, where the serviceman receives information about the next steps.

As the Ukrainian News agency earlier reported, on January 9, the Verkhovna Rada extended the deadline for voluntary return to service after the first voluntary abandonment of a military unit until March 1. Previously, the corresponding opportunity for a serviceman to return to service after the first voluntary abandonment of a military unit without criminal liability was valid until January 1, 2025.

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