Washington, DC - On November 1, the agreement between France and the United States, signed in Washington on 8 December last year, entered into force to establish a compensation fund for those Holocaust victims deported from France who had not been able to gain access to the French compensation program.

The agreement is another measure of justice to help those who suffered the harms of one of history’s darkest eras, and another example of the close U.S.-France partnership that characterizes our relationship. This fund will supplement the programs established by France for reparation and compensation of the victims of anti-Semitic persecutions during the Holocaust.

Under this agreement, France will provide $60 million in compensation. The United States will administer and distribute this amount to eligible Americans, Israelis and other foreigners and their families who were not entitled to make claims under the existing French program (French citizens and those covered by bilateral agreements with France – Belgium, Poland, the United Kingdom, and former Czechoslovakia – must apply to the French program).

In turn, the United States will ensure an enduring legal peace for France with regard to Holocaust deportation claims in the United States.

The United States will now begin accepting claims applications. For more information, please see: www.state.gov/deportationclaims