Title 10 — Armed ForcesRelease 119-73not60
§1511 Return Alive of Person Declared Missing or Dead
Title 10 › Subtitle Subtitle A— General Military Law › Part II— PERSONNEL › Chapter 76— MISSING PERSONS › § 1511
Summary
If a person who was declared missing or dead under federal rules is later found alive and returned to U.S. control, they must be paid for the entire period they were absent, under the rules that apply to people coming back from a missing status. That pay rule does not apply if the person is later shown to have been absent without leave (AWOL) or a deserter. Any death payments already made on that person’s behalf before February 10, 1996, stay in effect.
Full Legal Text
Title 10, §1511
Armed Forces — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)Any person (except for a person subsequently determined to have been absent without leave or a deserter) in a missing status or declared dead under subchapter VII of chapter 55 of title 5 or chapter 10 of title 37 or by a board appointed under this chapter who is found alive and returned to the control of the United States shall be paid for the full time of the absence of the person while given that status or declared dead under the law and regulations relating to the pay and allowances of persons returning from a missing status.
(b)Subsection (a) shall not be interpreted to invalidate or otherwise affect the receipt by any person of a death gratuity or other payment from the United States on behalf of a person referred to in subsection (a) before February 10, 1996.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Amendments
2001—Subsec. (b). Pub. L. 107–107 substituted “February 10, 1996” for “the date of the enactment of this chapter”.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
10 U.S.C. § 1511
Title 10 — Armed Forces
Last Updated
Apr 3, 2026
Release point: 119-73not60