Compensation for Victim of Crime (IVAC – Indemnisation des victimes d’actes criminels)
Note from CALACS Châteauguay :
Victims of sexual assault may be eligible for this compensation according to the criteria below.
In Québec, the main resource for compensation of victims of criminal acts is the Indemnisation des victimes d’actes criminels, or IVAC. The objective of this program is to support victims during their recovery, providing financial compensation if they are unable to work or reimbursing a portion of their medical or therapy expenses.
To be eligible for the IVAC program, the applicant must provide documentation proving that they were the victim of a criminal act and that they were injured. It is not necessary to have reported the crime to the police.
An application for benefits is filed with the Commission for labour standards, pay equity and occupational health and safety (Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail – CNESST) if the criminal act occurred in the workplace. It is also possible to go through the Human rights and youth rights commission (Commission des droits de la personne et des droits de la jeunesse – CDPDJ) if the act of sexual violence was discriminatory, i.e., if it was based on gender identity or expression, a disability or cultural background.
If the crime was committed outside of Canadian borders, you may contact the federal program for Financial Assistance for Canadians Victimized Abroad.
What is a person who is a victim of a criminal offence?
A victim of a criminal offence is a natural person who, as a result of the offence committed against him or her or another person, suffers physical or psychological harm.
He or she may be injured or dead as a result of the criminal offence or may have suffered material damage.
He or she may be the victim of a criminal offence that occurred in Quebec or outside Quebec, according to the criteria set out in the Regulation.
A person who is a victim of a criminal offence may receive financial assistance and be entitled to a range of services adapted to the category in which he or she finds himself or herself and which is provided for in the Loi visant à aider les personnes victimes d’infractions criminelles et à favoriser leur rétablissement.
Categories of victims
Several categories of victims are established.
Victims
The following persons are considered victims :
- a person who suffers the criminal offence
- a person who is harmed as a result of the criminal offence
- a parent or guardian of a child who is the victim of a criminal offence or who has died as a result of a criminal offence
- a child of a parent or guardian who is a victim of a criminal offence or who has died as a result of a criminal offence
- the spouse of a person who is the victim of a criminal offence or who has died as a result of a criminal offence
- a dependant of a person who is the victim of a criminal offence or who has died as a result of a criminal offence
- a relative of a person who is the victim of a criminal offence or who has died as a result of a criminal offence
- a witness to a criminal offence or the scene intact
Interveners
The following persons are, by reason of civic intervention, considered to be victims :
- a person who suffers an injury or death while attempting to prevent the commission of a criminal offence
- a person who is injured or killed while attempting to apprehend an offender
- a person who suffers a bodily harm while making or attempting to make an arrest of an offender or assisting a peace officer
- a parent or guardian of a child who has died or is injured while acting as an intervener
- the child of an intervener (parent or guardian) who has died or has been harmed
- spouse of a person who has died or has suffered a loss of integrity while being an intervener
- a dependant of a person who has died or is injured while an intervener
close relative of a person who has died or has suffered a loss of integrity while being an intervener
- witnessing a criminal offence or the scene intact
A person may qualify in more than one victim category and receive financial assistance under one of the categories. The category selected will be the one that is most beneficial to the victim.
The Direction générale de l’IVAC is responsible for the qualification and processing of applications for qualification. Qualification for the plan must meet some eligibility requirements.
