Germany

Germany has a crime victim compensation program to provide financial compensation to victims of violent or personal crime.

Eligibility Requirements
Report to Police: Yes.
Filing Period: Within 1 year; exceptions are made.

Claimants

• Victims of crime
• Dependents of homicide victims
• Foreign citizens; if the crime was committed after June 30, 1990 and the victim has stayed in Germany for more than 3 years
• EU country citizens from reciprocal states
• Foreign citizens of the victim are from a country (or state) which has a reciprocal agreement covering German citizens

Procedures

The victim must report the crime to the police and provide details of the date, place, and resulting injuries and losses of the crime.

A claimant can obtain an application from Versorgungsamt (war pension office) in almost every large town. Weisser Ring also helps claimants complete the compensation forms. Notification can take approximately 6 months but compensation follows almost immediately.

Benefits & Award Limits

There is no maximum award limit.

Compensable Costs

• Medical expenses
• Psychological care
• Vocational rehabilitation
• Pensions for disabled victims if victim's earning capacity is reduced by at least 25 percent for 6 months or more.
• Benefits for dependents of homicide victims
• Physical therapy
• Funeral expenses
• Lost support for dependents
• Services to replace work in the home previously performed by the victim

Emergency Awards

The program does not provide emergency compensation awards.

Funding Sources

Information not available.

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