Is Penalty Charged for Alimony to a Military Serviceman Who Received a Combat Injury: Court's Position

The Ternopil Court of Appeal partially satisfied the appeal of a serviceman in a dispute over the collection of penalties for late alimony payments.

The court concluded that military service itself does not exempt from liability in the form of penalties for delayed alimony payments, since the obligation to support a child is a family law duty, not a civil obligation under Article 509 of the Civil Code of Ukraine.

At the same time, the panel of judges took into account that the defendant received a combat injury and was undergoing treatment for a long time, therefore excluded the penalty for this period from the calculation.

The court also established that alimony was fully paid for certain months, so the penalty for those months was charged without grounds. As a result, the penalty amount was reduced by more than half—from UAH 190,600 to UAH 85,800.

Case circumstances

After the divorce, the Kharkiv District Court ordered the father to pay alimony for the maintenance of the minor son in the amount of one quarter of his salary (income), but not less than 50% of the subsistence minimum for a child of the corresponding age. The court determined that alimony payments were to start from February 17, 2021.

In February 2023, enforcement proceedings were initiated. According to the state executor's calculation, as of the end of October 2025, the alimony debt exceeded UAH 215,000. Due to this, the child's mother filed a lawsuit to recover penalties for late alimony payments amounting to over UAH 196,000.

The court of first instance partially satisfied the claim and recovered UAH 190,583.27 in penalties from the defendant.

Arguments of the appeal

In the appeal, the defendant stated that since June 2024 he has been serving in the Armed Forces of Ukraine, informed the state executor about his place of service, and provided documents for alimony deductions from his monetary allowance, therefore he considered that the delay occurred due to improper actions of the state executor, not his fault.

He also referred to legislation on social and legal protection of servicemen, believing that penalties should not be charged during the special period.

Additionally, the defendant cited a receipt for transferring USD 25,000 to the child's mother as future alimony compensation, argued that the court incorrectly determined the penalty period, and did not consider his combat injury and subsequent treatment.

Conclusions of the appellate court

The appellate court agreed that grounds for penalty collection exist in the case.

The panel reminded that according to Article 196 of the Family Code of Ukraine, penalties can only be charged if the debt arises due to the fault of the alimony payer.

At the same time, the burden of proving the absence of fault lies with the alimony payer. If such evidence is not provided, this is grounds for applying the liability stipulated by Article 196 of the Family Code.

In case No. 607/26308/25, the defendant did not prove that during the entire disputed period he took all measures within his power to timely and fully comply with the court's alimony enforcement decision. Irregular alimony payments alone do not indicate proper fulfillment of this obligation.

However, the appellate court concluded that the court of first instance incorrectly determined the penalty amount.

The panel found that from August to October 2022, alimony was actually paid in full, so penalties for these months were charged without considering the payments and should be excluded from the calculation.

The court also took into account that in November 2024 the defendant received combat gunshot wounds during a combat mission, underwent operative treatment, and was in treatment until passing the military-medical commission in March 2025. According to the judges, there were no sufficient grounds to conclude that the defendant willfully evaded alimony payments during this period, so penalties for that time should also be excluded from the calculation.

Why military service did not exempt from penalties

The appellate court rejected the defendant's argument that servicemen during the special period are fully exempt from penalties for late alimony payments.

The panel noted that exemption from penalties provided by the Law of Ukraine "On Social and Legal Protection of Servicemen and Their Families" applies to civil obligations. In contrast, the parental obligation to support a child arises directly from family law and is not a civil obligation under Article 509 of the Civil Code of Ukraine. Therefore, this provision does not exempt a serviceman from liability under Article 196 of the Family Code for willful delay in alimony payments. At the same time, specific circumstances related to receiving a combat injury and undergoing treatment may be considered by the court when determining the penalty amount.

The court also rejected the defendant's reference to the receipt for transferring USD 25,000 to the child's mother. The panel noted that such a receipt is not a legally recognized method to change or terminate alimony obligations, is not a notarized agreement between parents regarding child support, and cannot deprive the child of the right to proper maintenance. Moreover, alimony funds are paid for the child's maintenance and must be used exclusively in the child's interests.

Court decision

The appellate court partially satisfied the appeal and amended the first instance court's decision only regarding the penalty amount.

From the penalty calculation, UAH 11,860.31 was excluded for the period when alimony was paid, as well as UAH 92,905.89 for the defendant's treatment period after receiving the combat injury.

As a result, the penalty amount was reduced from UAH 190,583.27 to UAH 85,817.07. The rest of the first instance court's decision remained unchanged.

Subscribe to our Telegram channel t.me/sudua and to Google News SUD.UA, as well as to our VIBER and WhatsApp, Facebook page and Instagram page to stay updated on the most important events.