"Bereaved Families of Deceased Crime Victims Also Receive Relief Funds"... 'Crime Victim Protection Act' Passed by National Assembly

From now on, if a crime victim who applied for state relief funds dies, their bereaved family will also be able to receive the relief funds.

Ministry of Justice building.

According to the Ministry of Justice on the 28th, the amendment to the Act on the Protection of Crime Victims, which was passed at the National Assembly plenary session that day, mainly expands the scope of recipients eligible for crime victim relief funds.

Until now, if a crime victim who applied for disability or serious injury relief funds died before the payment of the relief funds without a causal relationship to the crime victimization, the bereaved family could not receive the relief funds. However, going forward, if the victim who applied for the relief funds dies before payment, the bereaved family will be able to receive the relief funds.

The amendment also includes provisions allowing foreigners who are raising children born from a spouse who is a Korean national or from a marital relationship (including common-law marriage) and who have valid residency status to receive relief funds without requiring mutual guarantee.

The state's right to claim damages through the investigation of assets held by the crime perpetrator will also be strengthened. When exercising the right to claim damages against the perpetrator, regulations allowing broad investigation of the perpetrator’s assets will be revised to enable prompt collection.

Crime victims who lack the ability to manage relief funds due to reasons such as age, disability, or illness will be able to receive the relief funds in installments.

In addition, to raise social interest in crime victims and promote their welfare, a “Crime Victims’ Human Rights Week” will be newly established for one week every year.

The Ministry of Justice stated, “With this amendment, the blind spots in the crime victim relief fund system will be resolved, and the regulations on investigating assets held by perpetrators have been broadly revised,” adding, “We expect protection and support for crime victims to be further strengthened.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.