Fraud remission under a settlement is a Justice Department process that pays fraud victims from forfeited assets when victims lack a current ownership interest in the property. You qualify only if you show direct money loss caused by the crime behind the forfeiture or a related crime in the same scheme. According to the U.S.
Department of Justice Justice Manual, the process is discretionary rather than automatic (Justice Manual on remission). That means eligibility turns on proof of loss, connection to the forfeited case, and clean hands. Payment also depends on how much forfeited money remains after expenses. Check the named petition process for each case before assuming you qualify.
Official resources:
- Check eligibility on Justice’s official study page — Use this page to check the study’s participation requirements.
- Read the official guidance from Govinfo — Use this primary source to verify the official guidance.
Table of Contents
- What loss counts?
- Who cannot receive remission?
- How are limited funds divided?
- What do live remission programs require?
What loss counts?
Federal rules require pecuniary loss directly caused by the offense underlying the forfeiture or a related offense in the same scheme. According to Cornell Legal Information Institute's copy of the federal remission regulation, only that direct causal link supports a petition (the text of 28 C.F.R. §9.8).
A scam wire, stolen payment, or taken investment can count when it traces to that scheme. Recoverable loss stays narrow. It covers fair market value of property taken on the loss date. It does not add forgone interest or collateral recovery expenses.
Who cannot receive remission?
Federal regulation 28 C.F.R. §9.8 bars petitioners who knowingly took part in, benefited from, or stayed willfully blind to the offense. It also bars people already paid for the same loss or people with other reasonably available recourse.
Knowledge, benefit, prior payment, and another practical remedy each defeat eligibility. This screen protects limited funds for innocent, uncompensated victims. Keep receipts, transfer records, complaints, and denial letters from other refund paths. They help show you did not benefit, were not repaid, and lack another remedy.
How are limited funds divided?
Federal regulation 28 C.F.R. §9.8 provides pro rata cuts when net forfeited proceeds cannot pay every victim in full. Each award is capped at the victim's share of net proceeds.
No victim can recover more than that victim's portion of the available pool. In practice, partial payment is common in large frauds. A valid $5,000 loss may draw less when hundreds of victims share one fund. File the full documented loss anyway because the pro rata share starts from that amount.
What do live remission programs require?
Under the $586 million Western Union settlement, people defrauded after sending Western Union transfers from Jan. 1, 2004 to March 9, 2020 may petition for remission. According to the U.S. Department of Justice announcement, the program covers fraud losses tied to those transfers (the Department's Western Union compensation notice).
The transfer window and fraud connection control eligibility. Under OneCoin remission, 2014–2019 purchasers with net loss after withdrawals may seek compensation through onecoinremission.com by June 30, 2026, with no fee or lawyer required. According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, net loss and the filing channel matter (the Bureau's OneCoin compensation notice). Use these checks before filing:.
- Western Union: covered transfer date plus fraud loss tied to that transfer.
- OneCoin: 2014–2019 purchase plus net loss after withdrawals.
- OneCoin: filing through the named site by the stated deadline.