The Direction générale de l’IVAC may refuse your application for the following reasons:
No evidence to demonstrate an act of good citizenship
The Direction générale de l'IVAC may deny an application for qualification if the person does not demonstrate that he or she has performed an act of good citizenship. An act of good citizenship is when a person voluntarily provides assistance to another person whose life or physical integrity he or she believes to be in danger.
It is on the information transmitted by the
rescuer that the Direction générale de l’IVAC will base its analysis to determine if there is a demonstration of an act of good citizenship.
Application filed after the statutory deadline
For events occurring on or after October 13, 2021
The time limits for applying for qualification under the
Loi visant à favoriser le civisme are the same as those under the
Loi visant à aider les personnes victimes d’infractions criminelles et à favoriser leur rétablissement.
The time limit for applying for qualification is 3 years except when the application is for an offence involving domestic violence, sexual violence or violence suffered during childhood. The time limit begins when the rescuer becomes aware of the harm he or she has suffered or within 3 years of his or her death caused by the act of citizenship.
For acts of citizenship for which there is no longer a time limit (domestic violence, sexual violence or violence suffered during childhood), rescuers who have had their application for benefits refused in the past for the sole reason that they were outside the time limit may, within 3 years of the entry into force of the LAPVIC, file an application using the form provided for this purpose: Request for qualification - Non-applicable crimes.
However, the application will be reviewed if the person demonstrates reasonable cause for the delay.
There is no time limit to apply for an offence involving domestic violence, sexual violence or violence suffered during childhood.
For events prior to October 13, 2021
Claims for benefits must be submitted to the Direction générale de l'IVAC no later than 2 years after the date of the injury or death of the rescuer (time limit in effect for acts of good citizenship performed
after May 23, 2013). For acts of good citizenship performed
prior to May 23, 2013, the time limit for filing a claim is one year.
The Direction Générale de l’ IVAC will conduct an analysis to determine if an application could be accepted even if it is submitted out of time. This is the case when it is demonstrated that the person who performed the act of good citizenship was unable to act, i.e., was not able to file the application within the required time frame.
The absence of harm related to the act of good citizenship
Psychological, physical or material harm
The harm may be an injury or property damaged during the act of good citizenship.
For events occurring on or after October 13, 2021
The rescuer is no longer required to demonstrate the injury he or she suffered for the analysis of his or her application for qualification. However, any application for qualification received after October 13, 2021, but whose act of citizenship occurred prior to that date will need to be accompanied by evidence (such as a medical report or psychological evaluation) of the injury.
For events prior to October 13, 2021
To objectively demonstrate that an injury occurred as a result of the act of good citizenship, a medical report that contains a medical diagnosis or a psychological evaluation are the most relevant documents to attach to the claim.
If the person who performed the rescue has a police report that factually describes the injury caused by the act of good citizenship, he or she may attach it to the claim to serve as proof of injury.
If the act of good citizenship resulted only in property damage, proof (bill, photos) may be attached to the claim.