Nominations typically begin in the summer. Nominators are encouraged to make their nominations well in advance of the deadline to allow the nominees time to review the application and submit the remaining information to OVC.

Sign up for the National Crime Victims’ Rights Week Subscription List to receive updates regarding the next nomination period.

By completing and submitting their part of the nomination form, the nominee agrees to—

• participate in all National Crime Victims’ Service Awards Ceremony events taking place in Washington, D.C. Award recipients’ travel expenses will be reimbursed within Federal Government guidelines. For group nominations, expenses will be reimbursed for a maximum of two nominees.
   
• the general use by the media and posting to Federal Government component websites and social media platforms of their photographic portraits or pictures, digital images, videotapes, other media material, and sound recordings. The media will be invited to participate in all events associated with National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.
   
• the public dissemination of their biographical information, including award-related personal and/or professional stories.

All nominations should be submitted online. 

If you experience problems submitting the nomination online or accessing the online nomination form, contact the OVC Response Center by phone at 800-851-3420 or email at [email protected].

Please proceed with a group nomination if you are interested in nominating a group of individuals who work on a specific project or work for a particular organization. Only one nomination letter is required for the entire group. The online nomination form will provide space for all pertinent information for each individual in the group.

Please review the Eligibility Requirements and the questions that should be addressed in your Nomination Letter to determine the eligibility of your nominee.

Yes. There are no restrictions against self-nominations or nominations for an organization or team of which you are a leader or member.

OVC needs the nominator's personal contact information, including their mailing address, email address, and phone number. This information is used to send notifications to the nominator and to verify information in the submission.

No. You may not nominate the same individuals, programs, organizations, teams, or coalition of individuals and programs for more than one award category.

Yes. Candidates nominated, but not selected, in previous years are eligible for consideration. Previous award winners, however, are not eligible for subsequent awards (regardless of the award category).

No. As a nominator, you are only required to complete the nominator's section of the online form, which includes—

• your contact information;
• the nominee's name, phone number and email address;
• award category;
• abstract; and
• nomination letter.

The nominee will be notified via email to submit the remainder of the required information. See Preparation Tips.

If you are nominating a group of individuals who work on a specific project, you are required to fill out only one nomination form for the entire group. The online nomination form allows you to add additional team members information to your form.

By logging in and completing the remaining part of the nomination form, the nominee is acknowledging the nomination submission and the terms of the award. By completing and submitting their part of the nomination form, the nominee agrees to—

• participate in all National Crime Victims’ Service Awards Ceremony events taking place in Washington, D.C. Award recipients’ travel expenses will be reimbursed within Federal Government guidelines. For group nominations, expenses will be reimbursed for a maximum of two nominees.
• the general use by the media and posting to Federal Government component websites and social media platforms of their photographic portraits or pictures, digital images, videotapes, other media material, and sound recordings. The media will be invited to participate in all events associated with National Crime Victims’ Rights Week.
• the public dissemination of their biographical information, including award-related personal and/or professional stories.

The nominee is also able to add or update information about themselves, including contact information, voluntary demographic information, and has the option to submit additional supporting documentation. View our Nominee Guidelines for further information. 

No. For this reason, please review all submission guidelines and compose your nomination letter and abstract prior to initiating the submission process. See Preparation Tips.

After you fill out the required fields, you can attach documents to support your submission.

For more tips and details, review the submission guidelines.

Yes. You will receive an automated reply confirming your successful submission.

After you complete your nomination—which should include the nominee's email address—an automatic notification is sent to the nominee. The email notification will contain a username and password that the nominee can then use to access the submission you filled out, review it, and then complete the rest of the form.

Yes. OVC will notify each nominee.

A member of the OVC staff will contact each selected nominee for their date of birth and Social Security number. The U.S. Department of Justice will use the Social Security number to conduct a background check of all nominees who move forward in the selection process.

All individuals and members of a team, program, or organization who have received and passed a background check will be allowed to appear on stage. The background check is conducted during the selection phase of the nomination process.

View our nominee guidelines for information about what each nominee should submit.

The recipients are announced each year at the National Crime Victims’ Service Awards Ceremony. When available, details about the next Awards Ceremony will be posted on our website.

OVC staff will notify award recipients with enough time to make travel arrangements prior to the ceremony. The nominees that are not elected to move forward through the tiered review process will be notified, as well.

No. Only one award plaque will be given to a group. The team or group name will appear on the award plaque.

The nominee name should be the full name of a nominee.

If an individual nominee has a nickname that they would want to appear on the plaque, that name should be submitted as the plaque name.

For group nominations, the name on the plaque should be the organization, team, or program name.