Emergency Funds for Domestic Violence Victims Texas: Relocation Money, Shelter, and Safe Housing

Safety comes before paperwork

Money matters, but your safety matters more. If someone is hurting you right now, call 911. For private help with planning, the National Domestic Violence Hotline is free, confidential, and open 24 hours a day. Call 1-800-799-7233 (SAFE), text START to 88788, or use the chat on its website. Advocates there can connect you with a Texas shelter near you.

A few precautions make the rest of this guide safer to use:

• Use a safer device. Phones and computers can be monitored, and browser history is hard to erase fully. A library computer or a friend’s phone may be safer.
• Think about shared accounts. A joint bank account, a shared phone plan, or a family streaming login can reveal where you are or what you are applying for.
• Pick a safe mailing address before you apply for anything. Many programs mail letters. The Address Confidentiality Program, explained below, can help.
• Keep copies of police reports, medical notes, and protective orders somewhere your abuser cannot reach, such as with a trusted person or an advocate.

Texas also has a statewide network of family violence advocates. The Texas Council on Family Violence’s Find Help page links to its directory of local programs, and the state’s HHSC Family Violence Program page explains what state-funded centers do.

Emergency funds for domestic violence victims Texas offers, compared

There is no single Texas “domestic violence grant” you apply for once. Instead, money and practical help come from several programs, each with its own rules. This table shows what each one does and how quickly it tends to move.

If you also want to know how these supports work nationally, including federal housing rights and credit repair after financial abuse, see our broader guide to financial assistance for abuse victims. This page stays focused on Texas programs and Texas law.

Crime Victims’ Compensation for rent and relocation

The Crime Victims’ Compensation Program is run by the Texas Office of the Attorney General (OAG). It pays crime-related costs such as medical bills, counseling, and lost wages. For survivors who need to leave, its most important benefit is rent and relocation money.

How much it pays

According to the OAG’s rent and relocation page, the program pays up to $5,000 for relocation deposits, moving expenses, and rent when the crime happened after August 31, 2023. That higher limit comes from a 2023 change to Chapter 56B of the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. For crimes before September 1, 2023, the old split still applies: up to $2,000 for deposits and moving costs, plus three months of rent capped at $1,800.

What it can cover

The OAG lists these examples of covered moving costs:

• Emergency or temporary lodging, for up to 14 days
• Monthly rent at the new home
• Rental and pet deposits
• Professional movers, or a rented truck or van
• Storage between the crime and the move
• Transportation costs
• Utility connections, deposits, and transfer fees

Who qualifies

Relocation help is open to people who qualify for CVC and were victims of domestic, family, or dating violence, sexual assault in the home, stalking, human trafficking, or the attempted murder of a child in the home. Other crime victims may qualify if there is a crime-related health or safety need to move.

The OAG’s eligibility page sets the basic rules. The crime must have happened in Texas. It must have been reported to law enforcement within a reasonable time. You must cooperate with the investigation and any prosecution, and you must apply within three years of the crime unless you can show good cause for a delay. If you share some blame for the crime, the payment may be reduced.

Limits to know

• One move only. The program helps with a single relocation.
• Three years to move. The clock starts on the date of the crime.
• Payer of last resort. By law, you must use other housing help you qualify for first and list it in your paperwork.
• No property losses. CVC does not pay for stolen or damaged belongings, or for pain and suffering.

When you need money fast

The OAG offers Priority Processing for victims facing urgent hardship, including people who need to relocate right away. It speeds up the eligibility review but does not promise approval. You send it through the OAG’s web form or email, not by mail or the portal, with a signed application, a letter explaining the hardship, the offense report if you have it, and the relocation forms. Missing items must be sent within two days, or the claim drops back to standard handling. Texas law also allows a separate emergency award of up to $1,500 when a final award is likely and waiting would cause undue hardship. Any emergency award is subtracted from your final award. Ask your advocate or the OAG whether it fits your case.

Applying for relocation money step by step

The OAG lays out the relocation process in clear stages. An advocate at a family violence center can help you with each one, at no cost.

1. Apply for CVC online or by mail. The application is free.
2. Wait for the eligibility letter. If approved, you will get paperwork explaining the next steps.
3. Look for a new home and keep every related paper together.
4. Request pre-move costs if needed. Some costs, such as estimated moving costs and the first month’s rent, may be paid in advance. You will need the Relocation and Rental Assistance Acknowledgement, the Relocation Expense Worksheet, and a Letter of Intent. A Payment Affirmation lets the OAG pay your landlord directly.
5. Move, and keep all receipts.
6. Send receipts and your signed lease within 30 days of the move. This is required for any further payment.

If you already moved before applying, you can still be reimbursed in a single payment. Send the acknowledgement, the worksheet, your full lease, and your receipts. Questions go to Crime Victim Services at (800) 983-9933, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Central.

Free help at family violence centers

Texas Health and Human Services (HHSC) funds a statewide network of family violence centers. In an October 2026 release, HHSC said the network includes 89 shelters and nine nonresidential centers and served more than 65,900 adults and children in fiscal year 2025. HHSC itself does not answer crisis calls; the centers do.

According to the HHSC Family Violence Program page, centers offer:

• A 24-hour hotline with safety planning and referrals
• Temporary emergency shelter around the clock (shelter-based centers)
• Emergency transportation and medical care
• Legal advocacy and court accompaniment
• Economic and housing advocacy
• Counseling, peer support, and children’s advocacy

Services are free and voluntary, and there is no income check. Nonresidential centers offer similar help without shelter beds. Many centers also hold small flexible funds from grants and donations for things like a bus ticket, a hotel night, or a security deposit. These funds are local, so ask your advocate what is available.

An advocate is also the person who can sign certain forms that unlock other help on this page, such as the utility deposit waiver and the lease documentation.

TANF cash and the family violence option

Texas TANF (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) is run by HHSC for low-income families with children. Two parts of it matter for survivors. For amounts and income limits, see our Texas TANF guide.

One-Time TANF

Under the Texas Works Handbook, One-Time TANF pays $1,000 in cash to a family that meets all TANF rules and faces one of four listed crises. One crisis fits many survivors: in a one-parent home, the child lost financial support from a parent or stepparent through separation, divorce, or abandonment within the last 12 months, and the caretaker worked at some point in those 12 months. Others include a recent job loss, or a working parent facing the loss of housing or transportation. If you take the payment, you cannot get regular TANF or another one-time payment for 12 months.

Good cause and the family violence option

TANF normally requires you to cooperate with the Attorney General’s child support office. If that would put you or your child at risk, you can claim good cause. The handbook tells staff to explain the family violence option to every applicant at the interview. A family violence specialist then makes a recommendation. Family violence is also a listed hardship that can extend TANF past the 60-month lifetime limit.

Ending a lease early under Texas law

Being tied to a lease is a common reason survivors stay. Texas Property Code section 92.016 lets a tenant end a residential lease early after family violence and avoid owing future rent. To use it, you give the landlord:

• Proof: a court order protecting you or an occupant (such as a temporary ex parte order, a protective order, or a magistrate’s emergency protection order), or documentation of the violence from a licensed health care provider, a licensed mental health provider, or a family violence advocate who helped you.
• Written notice of termination at least 30 days before the lease ends.

Your release takes effect after the notice period runs out and you move out. If the abuser was a co-tenant or occupant, the statute drops the 30-day advance notice requirement. The law does not erase rent you already owed before you ended the lease. A landlord who breaks this section can owe a civil penalty, actual damages, and attorney’s fees. Keep a copy of everything you deliver.

Utility deposit waivers for survivors

A new apartment usually means new deposits for electricity and gas. Texas utility rules let survivors of family violence skip these. As TexasLawHelp explains, you give the provider a certification letter signed by staff at a family violence center, treating medical staff, law enforcement, a district or county attorney’s office, a designee of the OAG crime victim services division, or a Texas Access to Justice Foundation grantee. It covers electric, gas, and telephone service. No police report or protective order is required, and the waiver can be used more than once if you need to move again.

Keeping your new address private

The OAG’s Address Confidentiality Program (ACP) gives survivors of family violence, sexual assault, human trafficking, and stalking a substitute P.O. box address. The OAG forwards your mail to your real home, usually with a delay of three or four days. You can use the substitute address for school enrollment, a driver’s license, and voter registration.

To apply you need either a protective order or other documentation of the crime, such as a police report or medical records. The OAG recommends applying through an advocate, and it says most applications are finished within about two weeks. Enrollment lasts three years and can be renewed. Call the ACP at (888) 832-2322 with questions.

Protective orders and money

A protective order is a safety tool, but it can also protect your finances. TexasLawHelp’s protective order guide says a judge can order the abuser to move out of the home, pay child support and medical support, stay away from your home and workplace, and separate a shared cell phone plan. A temporary ex parte order can be issued the same day and usually lasts up to 20 days. A family violence order after a hearing usually lasts up to two years and can last longer.

Your county or district attorney’s office, a family violence center, or a legal aid office can help you apply. A protective order also counts as proof for the lease termination law and the ACP.

What if you have not reported to police?

Many survivors have not called the police, and that is a common reason they believe no help exists. Here is how reporting affects each program:

• Crime Victims’ Compensation requires a report to law enforcement within a reasonable time and cooperation with the case. If you have not reported yet, talk with an advocate about the timing first.
• Family violence centers do not require a report.
• Lease termination can be based on documentation from an advocate or a health care provider instead of a court order.
• Utility deposit waivers need only a signed certification letter.
• The ACP accepts documentation such as medical records in place of a protective order.
• TANF good cause is decided with a family violence specialist, not by police.

A first-week money plan

1. Call the hotline or a local center for a safety plan and shelter if you need it.
2. Set up a safe address, through the ACP if possible.
3. Open your own bank account at a bank your abuser does not use, and change passwords.
4. Apply for CVC and ask your advocate to send a Priority Processing request if you must move quickly.
5. Apply for TANF or One-Time TANF and SNAP through HHSC if you have children and little income.
6. Deliver lease notice under Property Code 92.016 once you have your documentation.
7. Bring a deposit waiver letter when you set up utilities at the new home.

Related guides

• Emergency shelter for women
• Texas rental assistance
• Hardship grants in Texas
• Texas financial assistance

Frequently asked questions

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Program rules and amounts are set by the Texas Office of the Attorney General, Texas HHSC, and Texas law, and can change. National Relief Program is an independent website and is not affiliated with any government agency or the organizations named here.