Reporting requirements - all applicants

We can give financial assistance to eligible victims of violence, but the violence must be reported before you apply.

If you are not a special primary victim,the violence must be reported to police. You can report violence to the Queensland Police Service yourself or someone else may be able to report it.

Special primary victims

A special primary victim is a person who:

• is or was a child when the violence happened
• has impaired capacity
• is being threatened or intimidated by the offender or someone else.

Victims of the following offences are also special primary victims:

• sexual offences
• offences committed by a person in a position of power, influence, or trust
• domestic violence that  happened after 1 July 2017.

Before applying for financial assistance, a special primary victim can report the violence to:

• police, or a
• doctor, counsellor, psychologist, or domestic violence service.

All other victims must report the violence to police before applying for financial assistance.

Supporting information

If you reported to police, you need to tell us what station you reported it to and the QP number, by completing the relevant section of the application form. You don’t need to provide a copy of your statement or any other police documents. We’ll get the documents we need directly from police.

If you are a special primary victim, you need to tell us which service/agency you reported the violence to, by completing the relevant section of the application form. The service/agency needs to:

• complete a special primary victim report , or
• provide a letter, medical records or case notes that tell us:
  • the date you first reported the violence to the worker
  • the date (or date range) the violence happened
  • a description of what happened
  • the name of the offender (if known)
  • details of any injuries and adverse  impacts that were directly caused by the act of violence.

Mandatory reporting

Some people have mandatory reporting obligations to protect vulnerable people from future abuse.

• Mandatory reporters must report any abuse against a child.
• If any adult believes a child has been, or is being, sexually abused they must report this to police or notify Child Safety – Failure to report is an offence.

More information

• Report violence to police
• Report domestic violence to police
• Report adult sexual assault to police
• Report child abuse
• Report abuse to Office of the Public Guardian