Edit: Let's say that I am a Captain and I am captured at Dunkirk and liberated from a German POW camp in 1945. In that five year period, would I be entitled to five years backpay, plus any pay raises that might have accumulated in the mean time?
"Soldiers designated with Captive, Missing, or Missing in Action (MIA) status are entitled to receive the pay and allowances to which entitled when the status began or to which the Soldiers later become entitled."
According to the Geneva Convention (1929), Allied POWs in German captivity were eligible for labour projects in the country in which they were held captive so long as it fit their rank and health and was not "war related" work. Remuneration was agreed upon by the belligerents via a neutral third party, which was usually Switzerland, but sometimes also Spain or Sweden. See for example, Neville Wylie's Barbed Wire Diplomacy: Britain, Germany, and the Politics of Prisoners of War, 1939-1945 (Oxford University Press, 2010). Of course, it is worthwhile to mention that theory is very different than practice, and sometimes POWs were treated poorly and not according to the Geneva Convention. This is particularly true for wounded and sick POWs. The situation in the east, furthermore, was an entirely different situation.
Im not too sure what the OP is asking, but lets a say a US soldier is taken as a POW and held for two years. After the soldier is liberated would the US government pay the soldier for those two years ?
This is an article from the U.S. Navy which covers compensation payments to POWs held by Japan (in the first 3 paragraphs), and it would be reasonable to believe the same occured in Europe/N. Africa. The article does mention the compensation was paid from funds confiscated from Germany also, so I believe this to be the case.
Relevant also, though not to the time period, here are the current U.S. regulations regarding POW/MIA pay.
As you mention Dunkirk specifically, I'm assuming you're interested in the regulations followed by the British. I'm not familiar with their way of handling things, but it's likely they followed guidelines that were quite similar.
The US War Claims Act of 1948 set up several programs to arrange for compensation of POWs (both military and civilian), to be taken out of seized Japanese and German assets. Military POWs were paid a fixed daily rate (between $1.00 and 2.50 per day), based on whether or not they had been fed according to the standards of the Geneva Convention and whether or not they faced inhumane treatment during this period.
Many groups subsequently tried to sue (both the US and Japan) for additional compensation.
POWs from other nations have had different experiences. I know that members of the Dutch KNIL (Royal East Indies Army) who were interned by the Japanese received no compensation for their time in the Japanese POW/Internment camps, when they were supposed to receive normal military salaries. To this day the government maintains that the Indonesian government is responsible for this payout.
Source (In Dutch, sorry).
POWs are still subject to the Code of Conduct for Members of the United States Armed Forces, which includes following the chain of command and resisting enemy interrogations. Captured US soldiers are expected to continue behaving as soldiers, hence there would be no interruption of their pay and benefits.
There was an navy pilot in the gulf war who was shot down and we never recovered his body so he was listed as mia. His wife and kids still recieved all his pay and benifits as if he was still on active duty and he was promoted as well. We found proof that he had died from the locals in iraq a few years ago and his status was changed to kia. His wife and kids still get all of the benifits of a military spouse as far as im aware. I helped build his monument in pensacola back in 2009.
http://usmilitary.about.com/library/milinfo/genevacon/blart-60.htm This explains some of the catagories and payments.
Here's a pretty interesting article about the procedure for Returned Allied Military Personnel. I've pasted an excerpt below.
"“ETO SOP No. 58” – outlined the procedures for ex-PWs once they were evacuated from the battlefield. Former Prisoners of War were to be supplied with food, clothing, bedding, and toilet articles at the Reception Camps, and then transported as soon as possible after receiving these articles to the Embarkation Staging Areas. Intelligence screening was one of the primary functions to be performed at the staging area. This consisted of interviews designed to determine if there were any Nazi spies or sympathizers among the liberated PWs. Other functions to be performed at the staging area included establishing a personnel record on each former Prisoner of War and providing him with advance or partial payments until final payment could be arranged. ETO SOP No. 58 also stipulated that no former Prisoner of War would be allowed to embark by ship or air for the Zone of Interior without presenting his ID card.
The procedure called for ex-PWs to be provided with the necessary first-aid immediately upon liberation. It called for the RAMPs to have their bodies, clothing, and personal baggage disinfected by spraying. The latter was to be accompanied by a brief medical inspection to determine if the former Prisoners of War were free of all infectious diseases and ready to be moved. A triage was also required in order to separate the Prisoners into those to be evacuated through medical (litter patients or ex-PWs who had been hospitalized in PW camp hospitals –ed) or non-medical channels (all ambulatory cases who did not require immediate hospitalization –ed). It was further specified that all former PWs be given a thorough physical examination at the earliest practicable moment (including medical history, x-rays, urinalysis, blood test, lab tests, and diagnostic aids as deemed appropriate –ed). Particular attention was to be given to the psychiatric condition with focus on: depression, resentment, guilt, apathy, attitude to authority, anxiety, self-confidence, health concerns, and domestic trouble. Ex-Prisoners of War classified as patients were those who required further medical treatment at Debarkation Hospitals in the Zone of Interior. Those classified as non-patients were those who did not require additional hospitalization. The procedure specified that non-patient PWs would receive the appropriate immunizations before transfer to the United States.
“WD Prisoner of War Regulation, dated April 21, 1945” – outlined the administrative procedures to be followed by the military authorities between the time the ex-PWs first returned to the United States and the time when they were finally discharged or reassigned. This instruction required all former Prisoners of War who did not need further medical care to report to “Reception Centers” near their homes. Those former PWs requiring medical treatment were supposed to report to Reception Centers after receiving the necessary medical care at the Debarkation Hospitals.
At the Reception Stations, former PW intelligence and casualty reporting was to be completed. In this regard ex-PWs were directed to sign a statement agreeing not to divulge any security information to parties outside the military. They were also requested to complete forms identifying and reporting on any of their comrades who they believed died or became disabled in captivity. They also were to complete questionnaires on any atrocities they had witnessed during internment (intended for use in German War Crimes Trials –ed). Another form was to be completed by each ex-PW on his service history, to be used as the basis for consideration of promotion, which was granted on an individual, case by case, for both Officers and Enlisted Men. Other functions to be performed at the Reception Stations were the award of any decoration and final payment of all salaries to which PWs had become entitled during their internment.
After processing, the WD procedure provided former Prisoners of War with up to 60 days leave for recuperation and recovery, which could be extended if necessary. At the end of this period PWs were to report to Redistribution Stations were the administrative records needed for discharge or reassignment were to be completed. Ex-PWs were also advised of their right to make any claims for personal property lost or confiscated during their internment period."