ACT Victims of Crime Financial Assistance: What Bereaved Families Can Claim

When a person dies as the result of a crime in the ACT—a homicide, a fatal assault, a death caused by a serious criminal act—the family is left to cope with grief and, often, with a funeral bill they never anticipated paying. The ACT Government operates a Financial Assistance Scheme (FAS) specifically for this situation. It can cover funeral costs up to $19,627, and it operates independently of any criminal prosecution.

Most families do not know this program exists. And because it has its own eligibility rules and evidence requirements, many who do qualify fail to apply correctly.

What the Financial Assistance Scheme Covers

The FAS is administered under the Victims of Crime (Financial Assistance) Act 1983 by ACT Victim Support, which operates within the ACT Government's Justice directorate. For families who have lost a loved one to a violent crime, the scheme provides:

Funeral and burial expenses: Up to $19,627 (verify current indexed amount) for reasonable funeral costs, including burial or cremation fees, a coffin or urn, death notices, transport of the body, and the cost of a funeral service. This is a direct payment to cover actual costs incurred—not a lump sum paid to the family to spend freely.

Counselling and psychological support: The scheme also funds grief counselling for close family members, recognising that homicide and violent death create trauma well beyond the immediate financial shock.

Dependency payments: If the deceased was the primary income earner for dependants, the FAS can provide ongoing financial support to those dependants while they stabilise.

The FAS is not means-tested in the same way as the ACT Funeral Assistance Program (which targets families in financial hardship). Eligibility under the FAS is based on the circumstances of the death, not the family's income.

Who Qualifies

To access the FAS, the death must have resulted directly from a criminal act committed in the ACT. The range of qualifying circumstances includes:

• Homicide (murder or manslaughter)
• Assault causing death
• Dangerous driving causing death
• Sexual assault causing death
• Other serious acts of violence that directly resulted in the person's death

A criminal conviction is not required for the family to apply. The FAS operates on civil standards of evidence—the scheme assessor must be satisfied, on the balance of probabilities, that the death was caused by a criminal act. Families can apply even while a police investigation is ongoing, even if no charges have been laid, and even if the perpetrator is never identified.

Eligible applicants include:

• Immediate family members (spouse, civil partner, de facto partner of two or more years, parents, children)
• Anyone who was financially dependent on the deceased
• Close family members who have incurred funeral expenses

How to Apply

Applications are made to ACT Victim Support, which is part of the ACT Law Courts and Tribunal Service. The process:

1. Contact ACT Victim Support at (02) 6205 2066 or via the online form through the ACT Courts and Tribunal website.
2. Submit an application form identifying yourself as a close family member or financial dependant of the victim.
3. Provide evidence of the criminal act: This typically means a police incident report, a coroner's finding, or documentation of the investigation. You do not need a court conviction.
4. Provide evidence of expenses: Itemised funeral invoices or receipts for costs already incurred.
5. Provide evidence of relationship: Your marriage certificate, death certificate, or statutory declarations confirming your relationship to the deceased.

There are statutory time limits. In most cases, an application must be lodged within two years of the death. Extensions can be granted in exceptional circumstances, but you should not rely on this.

What the FAS Does Not Cover

The Financial Assistance Scheme is not a compensation claim against the perpetrator. It does not cover:

• Property damaged during the crime
• Loss of future earnings for the surviving spouse (beyond dependency payments)
• General damages for grief or suffering

For larger damages claims—particularly where the perpetrator has identifiable assets—a civil action in the ACT Supreme Court may be more appropriate. Victim Support ACT can advise on referrals to legal aid or private solicitors specialising in compensation claims.

The Difference Between FAS and the ACT Funeral Assistance Program

These are two completely different programs that serve different circumstances:

A family can potentially access both if the death was a crime and there is also financial hardship—but the FAS funeral payment and the Assistance Program cannot both pay for the same expenses. The FAS would generally take priority and cover more.

Other Support After a Violent Death

Families dealing with a sudden, violent death in the ACT also have access to:

Centrelink bereavement payments: If the deceased was receiving income support, the surviving partner is entitled to a 14-week transition payment. Notify Services Australia as soon as possible.

DVA support: If the deceased was a veteran, the DVA provides a separate funeral benefit and potentially an ongoing War Widow(er)'s Pension, regardless of how the death occurred.

Workers compensation: If the death occurred at work or as a result of work activities, a separate and much larger statutory death benefit applies under the Workers Compensation Act 1951—historically exceeding $617,000 in lump-sum benefits. This runs in parallel to the FAS and does not reduce any FAS entitlement.

The ACT Survivor Benefits Navigator maps all these overlapping benefit schemes—including the FAS, Centrelink, DVA, and workers compensation—with the forms, contacts, and step-by-step process for each.

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