31Application to commissioner

31 Application to commissioner (1) A person (the applicant) may apply to the commissioner for financial assistance. (2) An application for financial assistance must— (a) be in writing; and (b) include a contact address for the applicant; and (c) indicate the financial assistance payment that the applicant wishes to claim; and (d) be accompanied by evidence that— (i) the act of violence that is the subject of the application has been reported to a police officer; or (ii) if the applicant is a special reporting class victim and the application does not include a claim for a recognition payment—the act of violence that is the subject of the application has been reported in accordance with subsection (5). (3) However, the application need not comply with the requirement under subsection (2) (d) (i) if the act of violence was carried out by a person who was under the age of criminal responsibility for the offence in the course of which the act of violence occurred. (4) An applicant is a special reporting class victim if, in relation to an act of violence that is the subject of an application, the applicant is a primary victim— (a) of a sexual offence; or (b) of an offence in which the person responsible for the act of violence against the primary victim was in a position of power, trust or authority in relation to the primary victim; or (c) who has impaired physical, psychological or intellectual capacity; or (d) who was under 18 years old when the act of violence occurred; or (e) who did not report the act of violence to police because of threats made, or intimidation by, another person. (5) For subsection (2) (d) (ii), an applicant who is a special reporting class victim reports an act of violence in accordance with this section if— (a) for an application applying for an immediate need payment only—the applicant reported the act to at least 2 of the (i) a government agency; (ii) a doctor or a psychologist or a counsellor or a social worker; (iii) an appropriately qualified non-government agency; or (b) for an application applying for an immediate need payment and an economic loss payment, or for an economic loss payment only—the applicant reported the act to both of the following: (i) a government agency; (ii) a doctor or a psychologist or a counsellor or a social worker. (6) In this section: appropriately qualified non-government agency means an agency specified by the commissioner as an appropriately qualified non-government agency in the commissioner’s guidelines under section 87 (Commissioner’s guidelines). under the age of criminal responsibility—a person is under the age of criminal responsibility for an offence if the person is not criminally responsible under the Criminal Code, section 25 for the offence.