Almost 6000 current and former defence members, their family members and experts have made submissions to the Royal Commission into Defence and Veteran Suicide.
There were at least 1600 deaths by suicide within the defence community between 1997 and 2020, about 20 times the number killed in active duty over the same period.
The commission was established in 2021 to examine systemic failures with a final report containing recommendations due to be delivered to the federal Government next year.
Some 5889 submissions had been received by the deadline on Friday and any outstanding submissions that arrive by post will still be processed and analysed.
Further private and public hearings will be held in Sydney early next year.
The royal commission's work will eventually be carried out by a specialist body, with a report on that due in coming months.
The royal commission's chair Nick Kaldas thanked the thousands of people who shared their stories.
"Your experiences are key to understanding this complex issue and will help us deliver a robust final report," Mr Kaldas said.
"We hope to honour your stories by making recommendations to government that lead to real, meaningful and lasting change."
It comes a month after Mr Kaldas said the royal commission had been "stymied and stonewalled" as it sought vital information from Defence and other government bodies.
In an address to the National Press Club, he urged Defence to acknowledge its own role in failing to help prevent deaths.
Evidence uncovered by the commission suggested "there has been far too much talk and not enough action", he said.
Veterans
