Published: September 25, 2025

Violence that occurred a long time ago

The legislation that created Victim Assist and set up the scheme that victim-survivors now access was passed in 2009.

Before 2009, there was a different scheme that had different requirements. We’ve provided some general information about previous scheme below. However, if you’re supporting a victim-survivor that experienced violence before 1 December 2009, we recommend they get legal advice.

What can I do if my client experienced violence many years ago?

Under the victim of crime legislation, a victim-survivor is expected to apply to Victim Assist within 3 years of the act of violence or, if they were a child when the violence occurred, their 18th birthday.

In practice, Victim Assist will extend the time a victim-survivor has to apply if they can provide a reason for the delay.

If the person experienced the violence over a period of time, this timeframe starts when the violence ends. For example, if a person is in a violent relationship from January 2022, and this relationship ends on January 2024, the three years starts from January 2024. Of course, just because the relationship has ended does not mean the violence has ended.

When a person experiences violence, they may not remember exact dates or timeframe of when the violence occurred. That is okay, and instead they can provide an approximate date, such as July 2024.

Applying after 3 years

In practice, we find that Victim Assist does not strictly apply the 3-year timeframe. In the Victim Assist application form, it states that ‘you can ask for an extension of time if needed. We just need to know the reason for the delay’. Common reasons a person may not apply within the timeframe include:

• They were a child at the time of the violence.
• They did not know Victim Assist Queensland existed.
• Their mental health prevented them from being able to complete the application or seek support to complete the application.
• They were experiencing homelessness.

It is common for an application to be accepted well after the 3-year period, provided the victim-survivor provides information to explain the delay.

The violence occurred before 1 December 2009

Receiving financial assistance for violence that occurred before 1 December 2009 looks different to violence after 2009. This is because the Victim Assist scheme did not commence until 1 December 2009, and a different law applied at that time.

If your client has experienced violence before 1 December 2009, they will only be eligible for financial assistance if:

• the offender was convicted or plead guilty in a District or Supreme Court;
• the police state that the offender could not be located or died; or
• the offender went through the Mental Health Review Tribunal.

If the violence occurred before 2009, we recommend the victim-survivor gets legal advice. These matters can be complex and can depend on specific circumstances of the victim-survivor.