In 2011, the Claims Conference established the Holocaust Victim Compensation Fund (HVCF) for Holocaust victims residing in certain EU countries who had not previously received compensation from a German source and who met the persecution criteria of the Hardship Fund (established by the German Government). This program meant that for the first time, after nearly two decades of Claims Conference negotiations, Jewish Holocaust victims in European Union countries of Eastern Europe who fulfilled the eligibility criteria and had never received compensation acknowledging their suffering in the Shoah were able to receive one-time payments that cover fellow EU member countries in Western Europe.

Compensation was in the form of a one-time payment of €1,900.

The program opened for applications on September 1, 2011. The program was available in the following countries: Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, Slovak Republic, and Slovenia. Now, those who were eligible for HVCF may apply directly to the Hardship Fund, for a payment of €2,556. Those who were approved for the €1,900 HVCF payment have received a second payment of €656 so their total payment was €2,556.

You cannot apply for or receive a payment from the Hardship Fund if you received a payment from HVCF.