The California Victim Compensation Program, run by the California Victim Compensation Board (CalVCB), reimburses victims of violent crime for crime-related costs up to $70,000 per approved application.1CA Victim Compensation Board. What Is Covered It covers medical bills, mental health counseling, lost wages, funeral costs, relocation, and other expenses tied to the crime. One thing to understand up front: CalVCB is the payer of last resort. It pays only after your insurance, workers’ compensation, and other benefits have been applied.2CA Victim Compensation Board. Reimbursement
Who Qualifies
Eligibility reaches beyond the person who was directly harmed. CalVCB recognizes two groups: direct victims and derivative victims.
A direct victim is someone who suffered physical injury, was threatened with physical injury, experienced qualifying emotional injury, or died because of a covered crime. The crime must have happened in California, or you must have been a California resident when it happened elsewhere.3CA Victim Compensation Board. Who Is Eligible
A derivative victim is someone closely connected to the direct victim who suffered financially or emotionally because of the crime. That includes spouses, domestic partners, parents, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, roommates, a person who becomes a caretaker for a child victim after the crime, and anyone who takes on financial responsibility for a deceased victim’s expenses.
Crimes That Qualify
Common qualifying offenses include assault, domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, robbery, homicide, stalking, human trafficking, DUI injuries, hit-and-run incidents, elder abuse, kidnapping, and hate crimes.3CA Victim Compensation Board. Who Is Eligible The list is not exhaustive. Any crime that causes physical injury or a credible threat of physical injury can qualify, even if it is not named.
For a smaller set of crimes involving children, victims may qualify based on emotional injury alone, without any physical harm. These include child abandonment, child abduction, and neglect.3CA Victim Compensation Board. Who Is Eligible
Who Is Not Eligible
CalVCB will not pay someone convicted of a violent felony for losses that occurred while they were still serving their sentence, on probation, or on parole. Eligibility is restored for future victimization once probation, parole, or post-release supervision is fully completed.4Cornell Law School. California Code of Regulations Title 2, Section 649.4 – Eligibility of Felons The same restriction applies to registered sex offenders during their registration period.
The Cooperation Requirement
You must cooperate with law enforcement during the investigation and prosecution of the crime, and with CalVCB staff while your claim is reviewed. Failing to respond to requests for information can stall or sink a claim.
The cooperation requirement can be waived for victims of domestic violence, human trafficking, and sexual assault, particularly when reporting the crime to police would have created a safety risk.5CA Victim Compensation Board. Frequently Asked Questions In those situations, alternative documentation like a restraining order, medical records, or a letter from a victim services provider can substitute for a police report.
How Long You Have to Apply
You have seven years from the date of the crime to submit an application. If the injury or your connection to the crime was not immediately apparent, the seven years runs from the date you discovered it.5CA Victim Compensation Board. Frequently Asked Questions
Victims who were 21 or younger at the time of the crime have until their 28th birthday to apply.5CA Victim Compensation Board. Frequently Asked Questions Late applications may still be accepted if you can show good cause for the delay, but do not count on that. The earlier you apply, the smoother the process tends to go.
What CalVCB Pays For
Reimbursement falls into specific categories, each with its own limit, under the overall $70,000 cap.1CA Victim Compensation Board. What Is Covered
Medical and Dental Care
Hospital stays, ambulance services, prescriptions, surgery, and ongoing treatment for crime-related injuries are covered. CalVCB can also reimburse eyeglasses, hearing aids, dentures, and prosthetic devices lost or destroyed during the crime or needed because of it.6California Legislative Information. California Government Code 13957
Mental Health Counseling
Both direct and derivative victims can receive reimbursement for therapy. Derivative victims start with up to 30 sessions, plus up to 5 hours of case management that do not count against the session limit.7California Victim Compensation Board. Mental Health and Counseling Service Maximum Rates and Service Limitations for Reimbursement Sessions beyond the initial limit require an approved treatment plan from the provider.
Lost Income
If the crime left you unable to work, CalVCB can reimburse lost wages for up to five years. Victims who are permanently disabled may qualify for reimbursement beyond that.1CA Victim Compensation Board. What Is Covered Dependents of a victim who was killed or permanently disabled can also recover for the loss of financial support.
Funeral and Burial
When a victim dies as a result of the crime, CalVCB can reimburse up to $12,818 for funeral, burial, or memorial costs.8CA Victim Compensation Board. Funeral and Burial Service Providers
Relocation, Home Security, and Other Costs
Victims whose safety is threatened can receive up to $3,418 for relocation.9California Victim Compensation Board (CalVCB). Benefit Reference Guide – English In unusual or exceptionally dangerous circumstances, CalVCB can approve a higher amount.10Cornell Law School. California Code of Regulations Title 2, Section 649.17.1 – Increased Relocation Benefits for Unusual, Dire, or Exceptional Circumstances Home security improvements like new locks or alarm systems are reimbursable up to $1,000.
CalVCB also covers crime scene cleanup, home or vehicle modifications for permanently disabled victims, and job retraining when the victim can no longer do their previous work because of the crime.
Why Your Insurance Comes First
This is one of the most misunderstood parts of the program. CalVCB only pays for expenses not covered by any other source, including health insurance, auto insurance, home insurance, state disability insurance, and workers’ compensation.2CA Victim Compensation Board. Reimbursement Your provider has to bill your insurance first. If the insurer denies coverage or only pays part of the bill, CalVCB can pick up the rest, but you need to submit the explanation of benefits showing what insurance did and did not cover.
Skipping this step is one of the fastest ways to get a bill rejected or delayed. If CalVCB sees you have insurance and the provider did not bill it first, the claim goes back.
How to Apply
You can apply through CalVCB Online at online.victims.ca.gov, which lets you fill out the application, upload documents, and track your claim electronically.11CalVCB. CalVCB Application A paper application is also available and can be mailed to CalVCB’s Sacramento office.
If you need help, victim advocates from community organizations and government agencies can file on your behalf through CalVCB’s Advocate Portal.12CA Victim Compensation Board. CalVCB Home Many district attorney offices, rape crisis centers, and domestic violence shelters have trained advocates who walk victims through the process at no charge. Worth pursuing if the paperwork feels overwhelming.
Documents to Gather
- Police report number. If no report was filed and a waiver applies, submit medical records, a restraining order, or a letter from a victim services provider instead.
- Itemized bills showing the service, date, and amount. Providers can also bill CalVCB directly.
- Proof of income for lost-wage claims: tax returns, pay stubs, or a letter from your employer.
- Details about any health insurance, workers’ compensation, or other coverage that might apply.
- A signed release authorizing CalVCB to contact your healthcare providers, employer, and law enforcement to verify your claim.
Emergency Awards
If you are in urgent financial need, you can request an emergency award when you submit your application or a bill. CalVCB will expedite verification and respond as quickly as possible.13Cornell Law School. California Code of Regulations Title 2, Section 649.8 – Emergency Awards The regulations do not set a fixed dollar limit or guaranteed turnaround, but flagging the request on your application or bill is how you start the faster process.
If Your Claim Is Denied
After submission, you can check status through CalVCB Online. Payment on an approved bill typically issues within 30 to 90 days.14CA Victim Compensation Board. Billing and Payments
If your application or a specific expense is denied, CalVCB will send a written notice explaining why. You have 45 days from that notice to file a written appeal.15CA Victim Compensation Board. Your Right to Appeal A hearing officer then reviews the case and issues a recommendation; from there you have 20 days to request a hearing before the Board or 30 days to submit additional information. Missing the 45-day appeal window effectively ends your options on that denial, so mark the date as soon as the notice arrives. New evidence that was not reasonably available at the time of a hearing can support a later request for reconsideration.16Cornell Law School. California Code of Regulations Title 2, Section 647.38 – Requests for Reconsideration
What Happens If You Later Get a Settlement or Restitution
CalVCB has a legal right to recover what it paid you if you later receive a civil settlement, judgment, or insurance payout for the same crime. The Board automatically holds a lien against any such recovery, and no settlement or judgment can be finalized without first giving CalVCB notice and a chance to collect.17California Legislative Information. California Government Code 13963
If you pursued the civil case on your own, the court first deducts your litigation costs and attorney’s fees from the recovery, and CalVCB’s lien is satisfied from what remains. If you notify CalVCB about the case before receiving any money and file a claim within one year of the recovery, 25 percent of the amount subject to the lien goes to you; the rest is deposited into the state Restitution Fund.17California Legislative Information. California Government Code 13963
When a criminal court orders the offender to pay restitution for losses that CalVCB already covered, that restitution goes back to CalVCB to replenish the Restitution Fund rather than to the victim directly.18CalVCB – CA.gov. Offenders Guide to Restitution The practical takeaway: CalVCB is an advance that the state can recoup, not free money layered on top of other recoveries.
Are CalVCB Payments Taxable?
Payments from a state crime victim compensation fund are generally not taxable at the federal level, provided they are in the nature of welfare payments based on need.19Internal Revenue Service. Publication 525 (2025), Taxable and Nontaxable Income CalVCB payments fit that description. You should not need to report them as income on your federal return, but keep your award letters and payment records in case you ever need to document the exclusion.