Who is eligible for crime victim compensation

If you are an innocent victim of crime AND answer yes to one of the questions below, you may be eligible for crime victim compensation.

• □ Were you physically injured as a result of the crime?
•  
• □ Are you
  • □ under 18,
  • □ 60 or over, or
  • □ a person with a disability

       but were not physically injured as a result of the crime?

• □ Did your
  • □ family member,
  • □ spouse or domestic partner, or
  • □ the person on whom you were dependent

       die as a direct result of the crime?

• □ Are you the family member, surviving spouse or domestic partner of someone who died as a direct result of a crime that happened in the home that you were sharing?
•  
• □ Are you a vulnerable elder, incompetent, or physically disabled person who cannot care for yourself?
•  
• □ Are you a victim of labor or sex trafficking?
•  
• □ Are you a resident of New York State who was a victim of terrorist acts that happened outside the United States?
•  
• □ Are you a victim of one of the following
  • □ Aggravated harassment
  • □ Criminal contempt
  • □ Criminal mischief
  • □ Criminal obstruction of breathing or blood circulation
  • □ Dissemination of an unlawful surveillance image
  • □ Harassment
  • □ Hate crime
  • □ Kidnapping
  • □ Menacing
  • □ Reckless Endangerment
  • □ Robbery
  • □ Stalking 
  • □ Unlawful dissemination or publication of an intimate image ("revenge porn") 
  • □ Unlawful imprisonment
  • □ Unlawful surveillance

     but have not been physically injured?

• □ Are you a
  • □ child who was a victim of a crime
  • □ child who witnessed a crime, or
  • □ parent or guardian of a child victim or child witness?

You also may be eligible for compensation if you paid for the burial costs for an innocent crime victim.

NOTE: Undocumented crime victims are also eligible for compensation.

Updated 12/28/22

Resources to help you file a claim

✓ Get help from a victim assistance program.

An advocate from a victim assistance program can help you with your compensation application. These programs also can provide direct services, such as counseling, and may be able to help you with things such as emergency shelter and transportation to court.

✓ Watch the OVS Compensation Training Series.

These short videos outline assistance available from OVS and offer detailed instructions for filing claims. 

Introduction to Claims (4 ½ minutes)

• Who is eligible to apply for compensation
• Overview of expenses OVS can cover
• Examples of required documents
• Overview of OVS claims process

Personal Injury Claims (5 ½ minutes)

• Examples of expenses that can be reimbursed
• Exceptions to physical injury rule
  • If these charges are mentioned in a crime report, then a crime victim who was not physically injured, may be eligible for reimbursement
  • Categories of reimbursement for those in the “exception categories”
• Emergency awards

Essential Personal Property Claims (3 ½ minutes)

• Eligibility:
  • Innocent victim
  • Under 18
  • 60 or older
  • Have a disability
    • Exception (personal injury claim)
• What is considered EPP
• Maximum claim awards
• Documentation needed to prove eligibility and expense

Death Claims (4 minutes)

• Eligibility
• Expenses covered in death claim awards
• Who is eligible for loss of support claims
• Required documents
• Emergency awards

Domestic Violence Reimbursement Rules (2 minutes)

• Eligibility
• Documentation
• Reimbursable expenses

Medical Expense Reimbursement Rules (4 minutes)

• Definition
• Examples of reimbursable medical services
• Need for HIPAA form
• What documents are needed, and what information is needed within each document

Financial Loss Reimbursement Rules (6 minutes)

• Types of financial loss
  • Loss of earnings
  • Parental loss of earnings
  • Loss of support
  • Loss of savings for vulnerable person
• Eligibility, documentation, and other requirements for each type of financial loss
• Emergency awards

Child Victim Reimbursement Rules (2 ½ minutes)

• Eligibility and required documentation
• Allowable expenses when a child is a victim or witness to a personal injury crime
• Allowable expenses when a child is a victim or a witness to a non-personal injury crime

Rehabilitation Services Reimbursement Rules (3 ½ minutes)

• Services and modifications that can reimbursed
• Documentation needed
• Who must provide these services or modifications

Claim Application Review (5 ½ minutes)

• Overview of the process of filing a claim
• How to access the online portal
• How to start applying for compensation online
• Types of compensation claims
• How to complete the form, and tips

✓ Review the Portal FAQs and VSP FAQ.

Review the Portal FAQs. Once you begin the online application process, you can access the VSP FAQ found on the navigation bar. We suggest you review these documents prior to starting the application.

✓ Read instructions here.  

You can find instructions and the hardcopy or paper version of the application here.

✓ Find forms, tips, brochures and other important Victim Services Portal documents to help you file an online claim application here.

✓ Call 1-800-247-8035 or use this form if you have problems with the online application.

Updated 1/31/24

Overview of the application process

There are three types of OVS victim compensation claims:

• Death claims
• Essential personal property claims
• Personal injury claims

It is important to know which type of claim you qualify for. The kind of reimbursement you can request depends on the claim type. Applying for the wrong type of claim is one of the most common mistakes people make.

_{Image from NYS Office of Victim Services}

Important to know

• Not everyone who applies for victim compensation receives it. There are rules that determine eligibility and allowable reimbursements.
• OVS is a “payor of last resort.” This means that you may apply for victim compensation to help you with out of pocket costs related to a crime, but you may not be awarded these costs by OVS until other resources, such as insurance, have been exhausted. If you are later paid by the defendant in restitution or in a civil judgement, you will have to pay back OVS.
• Only people considered to be “innocent victims of crime” are eligible. After investigation, if OVS finds that you contributed to the crime happening, you may not be eligible for compensation or may only be eligible for a reduced amount.
• If you are eligible, it usually takes about 90 days to receive compensation, but it can take as much as 9 months. Don’t get discouraged. And remember, there are people who can help you.
• OVS may contact you for additional information, such as birth certificates and expense documentation. If you are working with a crime victim advocate at a victim assistance program, they will be able to upload these documents to the OVS Victim Services Portal.
• If you move or change your phone number or email while waiting for a claim decision, please make sure you tell OVS so they know how to contact you.
  • You can use this form or write a note that says what your old address was and what the new one will be.
  • Make sure you sign the form or note and include your OVS claim number.
  • You can fax, email, or upload it to the claim.

Updated 1/26/23

Screens to complete on the online portal

There are several sections in the online portal. Required information in the online application will have an asterisk (*). You must complete these fields of information before you can submit your application.

The pages or screens you can access and the information that is required depends on the type of claim you are applying for – personal injury, essential personal property, or death. See below to know what pages or screens you need to complete for each claim.

Essential Personal Property Claim

If your claim is an Essential Personal Property Claim, you will be asked to complete the following pages/screens:

• Victim
• Crime
• Restitution
• Expenses
• Essential Personal Property
• Private Lawyer
• Representative

Personal Injury Claim

If your claim is a Personal Injury Claim, you will be asked to complete the following pages/screens:

• Victim
• Claimant
• Crime
• Restitution
• Expenses
• Essential Personal Property
• Insurance
• Private Lawyer
• Representative

Death Claim

If your claim is a Death Claim, you will be asked to complete the following pages/screens:

• Victim
• Claimant
• Crime
• Restitution
• Expenses
• Insurance
• Private Lawyer
• Representative

You must complete the Claimant page only if:

• You are the parent or legal guardian of the victim, or
• Are asking for benefits because the victim died as a result of the crime

Updated 1/4/24

What type of Claim to apply for

Your answer to the first question on the “Crime” page selects which claim – personal injury, essential personal property, or death – you are applying for.

Answering this correctly is very important. The pages or screens on the Victim Services Portal you can access, and the expenses you are entitled to will depend on your answer to this question.

Although it seems like an easy question to answer, it isn’t. For example, even if you were not physically injured, you may still be eligible for a personal injury claim.

Please see the “Crime” page-by-page section on this guide for more information, and use the Victim Compensation Claim Navigator to help determine what type of claim you can apply for.

Emergency Awards

If you are experiencing financial difficulties because of the crime, you can request an Emergency Award from OVS. These awards are given before services have been received and/or paid for.

You can request Emergency Awards for the following:

• Prescription drugs including HIV medications
• Eyeglasses/contacts
• Emergency medical equipment
• Loss of earnings (after 2 weeks of lost income)
• Loss of support (which results in hardship)
• Moving/storage
• Security device installation or repair
• Lock replacement or repair
• Crime scene clean-up
• Funeral (up to $3000)

The maximum amount for an emergency award is $3000 for funeral expenses adn $2500 for other types of expenses.

To apply for an Emergency Award:

1. You must complete the victim compensation application AND
2. Contact the OVS Claims Intake Unit at ea@ovs.ny.gov or by fax 518-402-0921 and ask for an expedited decision

Please see these Emergency Award Guidelines for detailed informaiton.

Important to know:

• Your application must be complete to get an Emergency Award.
• There are limits to what OVS will pay.  
• Decisions are usually made within 24-hrs.
• If OVS grants you an Emergency Award and later finds out you are ineligible, they must request the return of payment.
• If you are a victim of sexual assault or sexual abuse but have not yet received the medical record of the Forensic Rape Exam (FRE), you can still apply for an Emergency Award. You will need to submit a letter signed by the Forensic Examiner. This letter must contain:
       • The date of the exam,
       • The date of the crime, and
       • A diagnosis from the medical record.
  Once you receive the medical records, submit them to OVS. OVS must have the medical records to process your claim.
• More information can be found here on the NYS OVS "Forms and Publications" page, and you can read the Emergency Award Guidelines.
• For help applying for an Emergency Award, contact a Crime Victim Advocate near you.

Updated 9/13/24

Victim Compensation Claim Navigator

One of the biggest mistakes people make is applying for the wrong claim. This is because the type of claim you can apply for may not be obvious. For example, some people may be eligible for a "personal injury claim" even if they did not experience personal injury. Filing the correct claim is important because the expenses you can get depend on the type of claim. 

Answer a few questions on the Victim Compensation Claim Navigator to find out what claim you are eligible to apply for.

Updated 1/25/24

Timeline

• Report the crime within one week to police or another qualified agency.
  • If you report the crime after a week you will need to explain the delay in your victim compensation application.
• File a claim with OVS within one year of the crime.
  • If you file the claim after a year, you will need to explain the delay in your application.
• OVS has up to 3 months to assign your claim to a staff investigator. Generally, this happens within weeks of receiving your claim application.
• Claims are usually investigated within 3 months, but the staff person has up to 6 months to investigate the claim. You will receive a written decision at the end of the investigation.
• If you are not satisfied with the decision, you have up to 30 days to request an appeal with OVS asking them to look at your claim again.
• After OVS sends their final decision, you have less than 4 months to request a Civil Practice Law and Rules Article 78 appeal.

Note:

• If you move or change your phone number or email while waiting for a decision on your claim, please make sure you notify OVS so they know how to contact you.
  • Submit a signed change of address with your claim number to OVS. You can either use this form or write a note that says what your old address was and what the new one will be.
  • You can fax, email, or upload it to the claim.
• After you submit your claim, you may be asked to submit additional information as part of the investigation process.

Updated 2/2/23

General tips and reminders

Navigating the online claim application

To start a new application, click the “Apply for Compensation” tab in the navigation bar on the top of the page.

IMPORTANT: You will need to print, sign, and upload the authorization page to OVS. Your claim is not complete until you submit the authorization page to OVS.

If you don’t want anyone to see what you are doing and need to quickly exit the site, click on the EXIT SITE button on the top right-hand side of the screen at any time. This will bring you to a google search screen. NOTE: By simply hitting the back arrow on the navigation bar, it will return you to your application. Please clear browser history if you are concerned about someone finding your search history.

When you are on a screen and don’t have all the required information, click NEXT. This will save the information you already completed and allow you to go to a different page/screen. You can come back to any page/screen when you have the required information. You can access partially completed applications from your Home page. (Click HOME on the navigation bar, and the EDIT APPLICATION button.)

Interpretation

If you need an interpreter, you can request this on the Victim or Claimant page.

Common Mistakes

One of the biggest mistakes people make is applying for the wrong claim. They do this by answering the question, “The victim ______________ due to the crime” on the Crime page incorrectly. Please go to the Crime page to help you understand how to answer this question, or use our Victim Compensation Claim Navigator. You can also view the OVS victim compensation training videos.

General tips

• All victim advocates from OVS funded programs MUST use a ny.gov business account to file claims. Only use a personal account if you are filing your own claim.
• Mailing addresses must be an official USPS postal address. Make sure the name of your street and zip code are entered correctly. If the address is incorrect, it may prevent you from officially submitting the claim application.
• OVS will contact you to ask for additional documentation, such as birth certificates and invoices.
• Your claim is not complete until you sign and submit the authorization page to OVS. If you do not submit this, your claim will be rejected.
• Make sure you inform OVS of a change of address, phone number, or email.
  • Submit a signed change of address with your claim number to OVS.
  • You can either use this Change of Address Form or write a note that says what your old address was and what the new one will be.
  • You can fax, email, or upload it to the claim.
• OVS will only speak to authorized individuals regarding this claim.
• Once a case is open, the claim number is open for life.  This means that if you have future expenses related to the crime, you can request compensation.
• Download and save a pdf of the application and authorization in case you need to refer to it later

Updated 9/3/24