Are bank cards blocked for servicemen in the North-Eastern Front? The Ministry of Defense gave a clear answer

Unauthorized leaving of the unit does not lead to automatic blocking of the bank card or account of the serviceman. At the same time, during the SZCH, the military unit stops paying cash benefits. The Ministry of Defense explained why these two procedures should not be confused.

The Ministry of Defense emphasized that the common formulation “went to the SZCH – the card was blocked” is legally incorrect.

In this case, we are talking about two different procedures – the termination of payments to the serviceman and the seizure of funds in his bank account.

What happens to payments after the SZCH

If a serviceman voluntarily leaves the unit, the military unit stops accruing and paying him cash benefits.

The grounds for this are determined by the Order of the Ministry of Defense No. 260 and Article 24 of the Law of Ukraine No. 2232-XII.

However, the termination of cash benefits does not mean the closure, freezing or automatic blocking of the bank account to which the serviceman previously received funds.

That is, the bank card itself can remain active, and the serviceman can use the funds already in the account, if other legal restrictions are not applied to them.

When a serviceman’s account can still be arrested

The arrest of funds is a separate legal procedure that does not occur automatically due to the fact of the SZC.

For example, within the framework of criminal proceedings, the arrest of property, in particular non-cash funds in bank accounts, is regulated by Article 170 of the Criminal Procedure Code of Ukraine.

For this, there must be grounds provided for by law and an appropriate procedural decision. In particular, this is a decision of an investigating judge or court.

Thus, the fact of a serviceman’s stay in the SZC is not an independent basis for the automatic arrest of his bank accounts.

“SZC – the card was blocked” is incorrect

The Ministry of Defense called for a distinction between these concepts.

The correct legal construction looks like this: during the SZCH, the military unit stops paying the military financial support.

Instead, blocking or arresting funds in a bank account is possible only if there is a separate legal basis and an appropriate procedure.

So, a military serviceman in the SZCH may stop receiving his salary and other stipulated payments, but this does not mean that the bank will automatically block his card or funds that are already in the account.