Frequently Asked Questions

To date, Crime Victims Fund (Fund) dollars have always come from offenders convicted of federal crimes, not from taxpayers. Information on the Fund is available on the Victim Compensation section of our website.

Restitution is a court action that requires perpetrators to make financial payments to their victims, usually as a condition of probation or leniency in sentencing. Compensation is provided by the Victim Compensation Program in each State.

For additional information about compensation, view the Victim Compensation section of our website.

Established in 1988 through an amendment to the Victims of Crime Act (VOCA) of 1984, the Office for Victims of Crime (OVC) is a federal office within the U.S. Department of Justice that provides federal funds to support victim assistance and compensation programs around the country and advocates for the fair treatment of crime victims.

More information about OVC is available in 2021 OVC Report to the Nation: Fiscal Years 2019-2020 Reaching Victims Everywhere.

Visit our Help for Victims microsite to learn about resources and services for victims of crime.

Another source of help is your local victim/witness assistance program. You may contact the VictimConnect helpline by phone at 855-484-2846 or online chat for a referral in your area.

Find out more in this brochure, What You Can Do If You Are a Victim of Crime, which includes a brief overview of OVC, your rights, and where you can get help.

NCVRW will be observed April 23–29, 2023.

Sign up for the NCVRW Subscription List to receive important updates about NCVRW, including the release of the 2023 theme, artwork, and Resource Guide.

Visit the NCVRW section of our website to learn more about NCVRW.

To receive AMBER Alerts in your area via Facebook, visit the AMBER Alert Facebook page. From this page click on "AMBER pages" and then click on the page(s) for states and/or territories from which you wish to get alerts. You may "Like" as many state/territory pages as you wish. When a child goes missing in your area, you will begin receiving updates.

The AMBER Alert page on the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children (NCMEC) website, lists other ways to receive AMBER Alerts including Twitter (Follow @AMBERAlert to receive rapid AMBER Alert notifications on your Twitter feed and share the alert with your followers). The NCMEC website also features ways to connect your Google and Yahoo! pages with the AMBER Alerts.

You may also follow Amber Alerts on Instagram to receive AMBER Alert notifications in your feed.

To learn more about the AMBER Alert program, please see the Office of Justice Programs' AMBER Alert website.

OVC provides five types of assistance to respond to incidents of terrorism and mass violence under the Antiterrorism and Emergency Assistance Program (AEAP).

• Crisis response grants (emergency, short-term, and up to 9 months) help victims build adaptive capacities, decrease stressors, and reduce symptoms of trauma immediately following an incident;
• Consequence management grants (ongoing, long-term, and up to 18 months) help victims recover and regain their ability to function;
• Criminal justice support grants (ongoing, long-term, and up to 36 months) facilitate victim participation in investigations or prosecutions directly related to the incident;
• Crime victim compensation grants (available during or after the crisis phase) reimburses victims for out-of-pocket expenses related to their victimization through state crime victim compensation programs; and
• Training and technical assistance (available during or after the crisis phase) helps federal, state, Tribal, and local authorities identify victim needs, coordinate victim services, develop response strategies, and address related issues. OVC may also provide consultants to draft the AEAP application and perform related tasks.

Please note that, on a case-by-case basis, the OVC Director may approve a limited amount of funding for administrative purposes deemed essential to the delivery of services and assistance to victims.

Eligible applicants for the Antiterrorism and Emergency Assistance Program (AEAP) include state victim assistance and compensation programs; public agencies, including federal, state, and local governments; federally recognized Indian Tribal governments, as determined by the Secretary of the Interior and published in the Federal Register; U.S. Attorney’s Offices; public institutions of higher education; and nongovernmental and victim service organizations.

NOTE: Funding is not available for foreign governments or individual crime victims.

AEAP grants are available by OVC invitation only. Shortly after an event, OVC will contact officials in the state or jurisdiction where the incident occurred to discuss the scope of victims’ needs and explain what resources may be available. OVC encourages potential applicants to coordinate victim-related activities with organizations such as state emergency preparedness agencies; state mental health agencies; local chapters of the American Red Cross and United Way; and federal, state, local, and/or Tribal law enforcement and prosecutors’ offices.

In most instances, OVC will make only one award for each incident with the grantee assuming overall responsibility for coordination of grant activities with subgrantees.

You are encouraged to view the AEAP solicitation to learn more about eligibility requirements.

The 2023 NCVRW Theme and Awareness Poster Kits are not yet are available to order.

We encourage you to update your preferences or sign up for the National Crime Victims’ Rights Week subscription list to receive important email updates, including the online release of the 2023 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Resource Guide.