Russian families say soldiers killed in Ukraine are listed as missing or deserters to avoid death pay

The complaints are appearing in chats and communities linked to pro-government organizations, where relatives are attempting to pressure authorities into providing assistance. Bild said it analyzed tens of thousands of messages from soldiers' families over the past six months.

Relatives say soldiers are frequently classified as missing in action or as deserters, preventing families from receiving compensation payments.

"The prosecutor's office makes no effort at all. We called everywhere, but the required documents often only arrive after a year," one woman wrote.

Under Russian law, the federal government is required to pay families of fallen servicemembers more than 13 million rubles ($157,000), with additional payments from regional budgets. However, payments are only disbursed after an official death confirmation.

Relatives say the paperwork process drags on for months or years. In some cases, documents list "undetermined cause of death" or fail to link the death to combat operations.

Russian independent outlets have previously reported that the military routinely classifies soldiers as missing in action when their bodies cannot be recovered from the battlefield. In such cases, families are forced to go to court to have the servicemember officially declared dead — a prerequisite for receiving any compensation.