[1] The first three Medals for Courage were awarded only three days later to three border guards for acts of bravery during the Battle of Lake Khasan.

Its award criteria were amended on three occasions by three separate Presidential Decrees, № 19 of 6 January 1999,[3] № 444 of 17 April 2003[3] and № 1099 of 7 September 2010.

The medal's reverse is plain except for an embossed letter "N" followed by a horizontal line in the lower half reserved for the award serial number, and a mint mark below it.

The mount is covered in a silk moiré 24mm wide grey ribbon with a blue 2mm edge stripe on each side.

The original Soviet award (1938 to 1943) hung from a small square mount covered with a red ribbon.