Victim assistance takes the form of financial benefits, depending on the harm suffered.

These services must all be directly related to the offence. They can be of different types, depending on the specific needs of the victims. They are mainly:

Benefits are provided primarily in the form of immediate assistance to meet the most urgent needs arising from the offence.

They intend to cover basic necessities.

Reimbursement by the Victims’ Assistance Act of psychotherapeutic support and/or medical expenses

If necessary, longer-term assistance will be provided until the victim’s health (including psychological) is stabilized, and until the other consequences of the offence are, as far as possible, overcome or compensated for. In this context, the financial situation of the victim, as well as that of the persons living in the same household as the victim, will be considered when calculating the amount financed by the LAVI Center.

In addition, the LAVI Compensation Board grants, under certain conditions, compensation for costs arising from the infringement not covered by third parties and/or compensation for moral redress, provided that the infringement is sufficiently serious.

The deadline for filing an application is 5 years from the day the offence was committed, or until the age of 25 for minor victims of serious offences.

The procedure is free of charge.

Your lawyer or a counselor from the LAVI Center can help you write your application.

If you appeal to the LAVI Compensation Board with the help of your lawyer, you need to request an extension of the possible legal assistance obtained for the criminal proceedings or, alternatively, of the assistance granted by the LAVI.

Deadlines must absolutely be respected. If the criminal, civil or administrative legal steps are not completed, it is necessary to write to the Board to safeguard the deadline.

The request must be addressed to:

Instance d’indemnisation LAVI
Rue de Lyon 89-91
1203 Genève

T – 022 546 51 13