PRESS RELEASE : Deadline set for schemes compensating victims of WWII property confiscation [September 2022]
The press release issued by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, on 23 September 2022.
- Final claims for compensation under the Enemy Property and Baltic States Schemes must be lodged by 31 March 2023
- since 1999, the schemes have considered over 1,300 claims, paying out over £23 million to successful claimants
- after decades in operation, the schemes now only receive a very small number of claims each year and have reached their natural conclusion
Today (Friday 23 September), the UK government has announced a deadline for making claims under 2 schemes compensating people who had assets confiscated during World War II.
Under the Trading with the Enemy Act 1939, the UK government confiscated assets in British territories owned by residents of enemy countries during World War II. This included residents of the former Nazi Germany, Italy and Japan and countries occupied by them.
Under the Enemy Property Payment Scheme, the Enemy Property Claims Assessment Panel (EPCAP) has been compensating individuals who suffered Nazi persecution and had their assets confiscated. The Panel also oversee the Baltic States Scheme, which compensates asset owners who resided in Estonia, Latvia or Lithuania.
For both schemes, final compensation claims must be lodged with the EPCAP Secretariat by 31 March 2023.
Compensation under the schemes was intended for people directly affected by the Trading with the Enemy Act 1939 or their close heirs. The Enemy Property Payment Scheme now only receives a small number of claims each year and there have been no claims under the Baltic States Scheme since 2013. Other comparable compensation schemes across Europe concluded their operations many years ago.
Today’s announcement follows a consultation launched last January to determine the appropriate date for the closure of the schemes.
To be eligible under the Enemy Property Payments Scheme, the owner of the UK asset at the time of confiscation or the claimant (who must prove their relationship to the owner) must have suffered Nazi persecution.
The Baltic States Scheme applies to any resident of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania who had deposited assets in the UK before the War. Under this scheme, Nazi persecution is not essential for the return of the original confiscated asset.
