Dependency payments for people affected by homicide
If you have been affected by a homicide, we are sorry for your loss and want to be able to help you recover. We may be able to give you a dependency payment, if you were financially dependent on a person who died as a result of an act of violence or was killed by a dangerous driver.
- Financial dependency claims
- Approved amounts
- How to apply
- Payment process
- Timeframes
- Specialist support services
Financial dependency claims
You can claim dependency if you were (or would have been) entirely or substantially dependent on the deceased person’s income at the time of their death. You may have been their partner, child (born or unborn) or another type of dependant.
Examples:
Mika lives with her uncle and aunty. They paid for everything she needs. Mika is a financial dependant of her uncle or aunty.
Jacob has a part time job and earns a minimal income. His income is not high enough to live independently so he lives with his brother. His brother pays most of the household expenses. Jacob is a financial dependant of his brother.
Approved amounts
If the death happened in Queensland and you were a financial dependant of the deceased person, we may also be able to pay a one-off dependency payment of up to $20,000.
- This payment is to recognise the loss of benefits they were receiving and would have continued to receive, if the person had not died.
- This amount can be claimed by each financial dependant.
We realise these payments will not cover all of your losses, but we hope they will give some initial financial relief.
We may also be able to pay some of your recovery expenses, such as:
- medical, counselling and medical travel expenses
- other recovery expenses.
Relevant payments
You must tell us if you receive any other money because of the person’s death (e.g. insurance payments or payments from the deceased’s estate). We may need to deduct this amount from your payment.
How to apply
To claim a dependency payment, you need to:
- complete the application form and attach
- your identity documents
- financial documents - see below.
You can include funeral expenses and other expenses if you have them. If you are claiming medical expenses, you need to provide information about your injuries.
If you need to add a dependency claim or new expenses to an application you have already submitted, use our expenses form.
Providing information about your financial dependence
Because you are claiming a dependency payment, you need to provide extra information.
You need to provide documents showing:
- You were entirely or substantially dependent on the deceased to support you financially.
- The amount of financial support you were likely to receive in the two years after they died.
This may include photocopies, scanned copies or clear photographs of one or more of the following:
- documents showing your relationship to the deceased (a birth certificate, marriage certificate, guardianship documents, a will or something similar)
- proof of joint bank accounts or shared household bills
- bank statements showing regular payments from the deceased person
- Centrelink or child support documents
- tax returns for yourself and the deceased person
- evidence of expenses the deceased paid for you (e.g. receipts for school fees, uniforms)
- bank statements or receipts that show the deceased person regularly paid expenses for you (e.g. school fees, sports club fees), or
- other documents that show financial dependence.
Payment process
If you are an adult, and your claim is approved, lump sum payments (distress and dependency), will be paid directly to you.
If you are an adult with impaired capacity for a prescribed financial matter and your claim is approved, and an administrator has been appointed or an enduring power of attorney is in place, the one-off lump sum payment will be paid to the administrator or power of attorney.
If you are a child (under 18), and your claim is approved, lump sum payments (distress and dependency), will be paid directly to the Public Trustee of Queensland to be held in trust for you until you turn 18.
Once you receive your ‘notice of decision’ and your claim is approved, electronic payments will be deposited into your nominated bank account within 10 business days.
Timeframes
Due to the high number of claims already queued, it may be many months before we’re able to assess your application and pay approved expenses.
If you have an urgent expense, and meet the conditions for claiming urgent expenses, we may prioritise the assessment of these expenses. If we decide the expenses don’t meet these conditions, we’ll let you know. Non-urgent expenses will be queued for general assessment within normal timeframes.
Once you receive your notice of decision and your claim is approved, electronic payments will be deposited into your nominated bank account within 10 business days.
Specialist support services
Queensland Homicide Victims Support Group provides statewide specialist support to people who have experienced a homicide in their family. They can also provide information about the what to expect during the investigation and subsequent trial and handling media enquiries.