If my claim is to be sent from this country to another EU country

Spain

Content provided by:
Spain

Which authority will help me send a claim to another EU country?

For violent crimes and sexual offences, the Oficinas de Asistencia a las Víctimas del delito (Crime Victim Support Offices) are the assisting authority.

You can find the locations of the Crime Victim Support Offices at the following link.

For terrorism offences, the Ministry of the Interior is the assisting authority.

You can check the website of the Ministry of the Interior for information on the assisting authority.

What is the role of the assisting authority?

For violent crimes and sexual offences, the Crime Victim Support Offices are the assisting authority for victims of crime in cross-border situations, in cases where the crime was committed in an EU Member State other than Spain and the victim is habitually resident in Spain.

Compensation can be applied for in accordance with Spanish legislation, except where the crime was committed in Spain and the applicant for aid is habitually resident in another EU Member State, when the crime was committed in an EU Member State other than Spain and the applicant is habitually resident in Spain. In the latter case, the assisting authority, which is the Crime Victim Support Office of the province in which the victim resides, will cooperate in initiating and handling the procedures for the granting of the aid by the EU Member State in which the crime was committed, and will provide the applicant for aid with the following:

  • Information about the possibilities of claiming financial aid or compensation, the procedures and forms required, including the way in which these must be completed, and the supporting documentation that may be necessary.
  • General guidance about how to meet requests for additional information.

Moreover, as assisting authority, the Crime Victim Support Offices must do the following:

  • Forward the claim and supporting documents, as well as any documents that may be required subsequently, to the deciding authority appointed by the State in whose territory the crime was committed.
  • Cooperate with the designated deciding authority for the State in whose territory the crime was committed if, in accordance with its national legislation, that State agrees to a hearing for the applicant or any other person.

At the request of the deciding authority, this cooperation by the Crime Victim Support Offices could consist in providing whatever is necessary for the deciding authority to hold the hearing directly, in particular by telephone or videoconferencing, or in giving a hearing to an applicant for financial aid or to any other person and sending a report of the hearing to the deciding authority. If the person to be heard agrees, the deciding authority can hold the hearing directly.

In the case of terrorism offences, if the terrorist act occurred outside Spain, Spanish nationals abroad who become victims of groups that habitually operate in Spain, or of terrorist acts against the Spanish State or Spanish interests, will generally be entitled to aid. Similarly, participants in peace and security operations forming part of Spanish contingents abroad that are the object of a terrorist attack will also be entitled to the aid provided for in law.

In the case of terrorism offences in cross-border situations, if the crime is committed in an EU Member State other than Spain and the victim is habitually resident in Spain, the Ministry of the Interior - specifically, the Directorate-General for the Support of Victims of Terrorism(Dirección General de Apoyo a las Víctimas del Terrorismo del Ministerio del Interior) - is the assisting authority for the abovementioned purposes, and will carry out the same assisting authority functions as those described above for the Crime Victim Support Offices.

Will this authority translate the supporting documents if the outgoing claim needs this? If so, who pays for this?

No.

Are there administrative or other charges to be paid when the clam is sent abroad?

No.

Last update: 17/01/2024

The national language version of this page is maintained by the respective Member State. The translations have been done by the European Commission service. Possible changes introduced in the original by the competent national authority may not be yet reflected in the translations. The European Commission accepts no responsibility or liability whatsoever with regard to any information or data contained or referred to in this document. Please refer to the legal notice to see copyright rules for the Member State responsible for this page.