CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION SCHEME REGULATIONS

SUBSIDIARY LEGISLATION 9.12

CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION

SCHEME REGULATIONS

29th May, 2012

LEGAL NOTICE 186 of 2012, as amended by Act XVIII of 2013; Legal

Notice 139 of 2016, Act XIII of 2018 and by Legal Notice 477 of 2021.

Part I

INTRODUCTORY

(1) The title of these regulations is the Criminal Injuries

Compensation Scheme Regulations.

(2) The purpose of these regulations is to implement the

provisions of Council Directive 2004/80/EC relating to

compensation to crime victims.

Amended by

L.N. 139 of 2016;

L.N. 477 of 2021.

APPLICATION FOR CRIMINAL INJURIES COMPENSATION *

Part I

Personal details

Name and surname

Address

ID number

Telephone nos.

Fixed line

Mobile

E-mail address

In case of an applicant as a qualifying claimant

Name and surname of deceased victim

Date of victim’s death

_____/____________/_______

Nature and degree of dependency on the

deceased victim

Part II

Information to be submitted

A. Date of commission of crime

_____/____________/_______

B.

Place of commission of crime

C. Brief description of nature and consequences of crime

D. Identity of assailant where known

E. Steps taken to inform the police, or other body or person of the circumstances giving rise

to the crime

F. Co-operation with the police or other authority in attempting to bring the assailant to

justice

G.

If assailant has been brought to justice, state when and before which Criminal Court

H. Has the Criminal Court already established the compensation due to the victim/s of the

crime? If so, state the date of the order.

I. Has any legal action to claim compensation been taken? If so, state what type, when taken

and, if proceedings have been terminated, the final outcome thereof

J. Give a sufficient description of the nature (physical, psychological, proprietary, mental

damage etc.) and extent (e.g. partial or permanent disability, medical and hospitalization

expenses, loss or reduction of earnings resulting from temporary or permanent inability to

work) of the criminal injuries suffered, indicating the pecuniary amount of compensation

hereby claimed

Part III

Certificates and documents to be attached hereto

1. Birth certificate of applicant.

2. Death Certificate of victim, where applicable.

3. Applicant's Police Conduct Certificate.

4. Police Report relating to the crime in question.

5. Affidavit by applicant confirming that no compensation has been awarded in connection

with the crime mentioned in this application.

6. Any other documentary evidence in support of the claim hereby made, particularly

medical certificates with regard to paragraph J under Part II above.

7. Any other relevant certificates or documents.

Signature of applicant



Tick the appropriate manner in which you post/e-mail

wish the reply to be forwarded to you

or

Date

_____/____________/_______



via SMS

The personal information provided in this application form shall be processed in

accordance with the provisions of the Data Protection Act (Cap. 586. of the Laws of Malta)

and solely for the purpose(s) enshrined under the Criminal Injuries Compensation Scheme

Regulations, 2012 and any other ancillary matter.

Your personal information will not be disclosed to third parties without your express

consent unless this is strictly required by law.

You have the right to request access to your personal data as well as the right to rectify and

where applicable, erase any inaccurate, incomplete or immaterial personal data processed by

the Assisting Officer and/or the Claims Officer.

* This application is to be forwarded, duly filled in and with the necessary accompanying

documents, to the Assisting Officer, Department of Justice, 14, 16, 18, Market Street, Floriana

FRN 1082.

I do hereby authorise the Assisting Officer and/or the Claims Officer to process the data

contained in this form for the above-stated purpose(s).

In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires

"Assisting Officer" means a person appointed under regulation 3,

who shall be the assisting authority;

"award" means an award of compensation made in accordance

with the provisions of the Scheme referred to in regulation 9;

"Claims Officer" means the Attorney General;

"compensation" means compensation payable under an award;

"criminal injuries" means any damage suffered as a consequence

of a violent intentional crime as defined under these regulations;

"dependants" means the persons maintained by the deceased and

the persons who were entitled by law to require to be maintained by

the deceased;

"Minister" means the Minister responsible for Justice;

"Scheme" means the scheme under which persons suffering

criminal injuries may be eligible for compensation under the

provisions of these regulations;

"violent intentional crime" means an act which constitutes a crime

referred to in articles 197, 198, 204, 204A, 204B, 204C, 204D, 205,

207 of the Criminal Code; the crimes referred to in articles 211 and

216 of the Criminal Code, when committed by any of the means

referred to in articles 217, 218, 312, 314A(2), 314B(2) of the Criminal

Code; the crimes referred to in articles 248A to 248D, both inclusive,

of the Criminal Code, as well as the crimes referred to in articles

251BA, 251E, 314CB(1) and (2) of the said Code; and the offences

mentioned in articles 316 and 317 of the said Code where, as a result

thereof, a person perishes or suffers grievous bodily harm.

The Assisting Officer shall be appointed by the Minister on

such terms and conditions as he considers appropriate and shall

receive applications and assist in their evaluation in accordance

with these regulations.

(1) Applications for compensation under these regulations

shall be submitted in the form as specified in the Schedule.

(2)

Applications shall be accompanied by a police report.

(3) Applications shall be submitted by not later than one year

from when the violent intentional crime was committed.

(4) An application for compensation, together with the

necessary documentation, shall be submitted to the Assisting

Officer who shall then forward it to the Claims Officer who shall

determine awards and payments of compensation.

(5) The Claims Officer may, at his discretion, request any other

additional evidence with the purpose, amongst other things, to

ensure that compensation has not been awarded or will not be

awarded from any other source including, if need be, an affidavit

by the applicant.

(6) The Claims Officer may also, at his discretion, call the

applicant to be medically examined or re-examined for the

purposes of these regulations.

The Claim Officer’s staff will process applications in the

first instance and may seek all relevant information as to the

circumstances of the criminal injury either from the applicant or

otherwise.

Part II

ENTITLEMENT TO COMPENSATION

The Scheme shall apply only with regards to criminal

injuries, as defined, subject to the provisions of these regulations.

To qualify for compensation, applicants are required to

indicate to the Claims Officer that the offence giving rise to the

criminal injury sustained has been the subject of criminal

proceedings or that it was reported to the Police without delay.

Compensation may be paid in accordance with the Scheme

(a) to an applicant who has sustained a criminal injury on

or after 1st January 2006; and

(b) to an applicant who is a qualifying claimant for the

purposes of regulation 9(2)(d) with regards to a victim

of a criminal injury sustained on or after 1st January

2006 who has since died due to the same criminal

injury sustained.

(1)

The persons entitled to compensation are

(a) citizens of Malta; and

(b) citizens of one of the Member States of the European

Union; and

(c) persons who are habitual residents of Malta.

(2) The Claims Officer shall consider claims for compensation

made by or on behalf of

(a) the person who was the victim of the crime;

(b) any person who becomes responsible for the

maintenance of the victim and who has suffered a

direct, pecuniary loss as a result of the criminal injury

sustained by the victim;

(c) any dependant of the victim where the victim has died

as a result of the criminal injuries sustained or, if he

has no dependant, any person who incurred expenses

as a result of his death;

(d) any claimant as provided for in articles 1045, 1046,

1047 and 1048 of the Civil Code, where the victim has

died since sustaining a criminal injury.

The Claims Officer may withhold or reduce an award

where he considers that

(a) the applicant failed to take, without delay, all

reasonable steps to inform the police, or other body or

person considered by the Claims Officer to be

appropriate for the purpose, of the circumstances

giving rise to the crime; or

(b) the applicant failed to co-operate with the police or

other authority in attempting to bring the assailant to

justice; or

(c) the applicant has failed to give all reasonable

assistance to the Claims Officer or other body or

person in connection with the application; or

(d) the conduct of the applicant before, during or after the

incident giving rise to the application makes it

inappropriate that a full award or any award at all be

made; or

(e) the applicant’s character as shown by his criminal

convictions or by evidence available to the Claims

Officer makes it inappropriate that a full award or any

award at all be made; or

(f)

the victim was jointly or partially responsible for the

criminal injury sustained; or

(g) the conduct of the victim, his character or his way of

life, makes it appropriate to do so.

No compensation will be paid under the Scheme where

(a) the criminal injury was sustained before 1st January

2006;

(b) the Claims Officer is of the opinion that the offender is

not indigent or unless proof has been produced that

legal action to claim compensation has proved to be

fruitless;

(c) the applicant has not, in the opinion of the Claims

Officer, provided all reasonable assistance and

information required for the purposes of these

regulations;

(d) the applicant was responsible for the criminal injury

sustained because of provocation or any other action

of his own;

(e) the Claims Officer is satisfied that the conduct of the

victim, his character or his way of life, make it

inappropriate that he should be granted an award.

Where the Criminal Court, by virtue of article 532A of the

Criminal Code, has already established the compensation due to the

victim or victims of the criminal injury, the Claims Officer will not

assess that claim but will proceed to pay compensation subject to

the provisions of these regulations.

Part III

PROCEDURES AND PAYMENT

The Claims Officer shall be free to draw up and publish

a n y in s t r u c t i o n s t h a t h e co n s i d e r s n e c e s s a r y r e ga r d i n g t he

procedure for administering these regulations

Provided that these instructions will be consistent with the

provisions of these regulations and with the general intention that

t h e a d m i n i s t r a t i o n o f t h e s e r e g u l a t i o n s a n d i n p a r t i c u l a r,

proceedings before the Claims Officer, should be informal.

An applicant may be accompanied by his legal adviser or

another person, at his own cost.

Hearings will be held in private.

The standard of proof, which the Claims Officer will apply

for the determination of any claim, shall be on a balance of

probabilities.

Compensation will be by way of a lump sum payment,

rather than a periodical pension

Provided that it will be open to the Claims Officer to make

an interim award and to postpone making a final award in a case in

which a final medical assessment of the criminal injury is delayed.

No payment to any claimant shall exceed the sum of

twenty-three thousand and three hundred euro (€23,300) and such

sum shall not be exceeded where there is more than one claimant

claiming by virtue of the same crime.

The Government shall be subrogated into the rights of the

victims of the crime against the perpetrator, whether known or

unknown.

Payments received by the claimants shall be considered to

be part of the civil damages sustained.

The Claims Officer shall be entitled to make any

arrangements that he considers desirable for the administration of

money he awards as compensation.

Any claim pending under the the Criminal Injuries

Compensation Regulations, 2007, which are hereby revoked, shall

continue to be heard and treated under these regulations, and the

provisions of these regulations shall, mutatis mutandis, apply in

respect of such pending claim.