How to Apply

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Grant Reference Guide | Resources for Applicants | Program Specific Resources

The Office on Violence Against Women (OVW) invites you to apply for our programs. Submit your application to Grants.gov. Please carefully review and follow the instructions that follow.

  1. Go to Grants.gov. This will take you to the Grants.gov home page. If you already have a Grants.gov account, you may search for grant opportunities. If you do not have a Grants.gov account, go to the Get Registered link on the right hand side of the home page, select to register as an Organization or an Individual, and follow the steps outlined to register in Grants.gov.
  2. To search for grant opportunities, go to the Find Grant Opportunities link on the left side of the home page. Select Browse by Agency. Select Department of Justice. All available Department of Justice grant opportunities will be displayed. Click on Close Date or Agency to sort the search results.
  3. Find the program for which you wish to apply and then click on the Opportunity Title to view a synopsis of the grant opportunity. Click on the Application link on the upper right hand side to download the application package from Grants.gov. Click the download link on the pop-up screen. Click Download Application Package on the pop-up screen.
  4. Follow the instructions at the bottom of page 1 of the application package to complete the application package. On the application package, required fields are highlighted in yellow.
  5. Your opportunity to submit your application in Grants.gov ends at 11:59 p.m. E.T., on the due date for the selected program. You must submit in Grants.gov within the specified dates and within the specified times. There are no other opportunities for you to submit an application.

Access the Grants.gov Applicant Resources section for tools and documents to help applicants navigate the Grants.gov system.

If you have technical questions regarding Grants.gov, contact the Grants.gov Contact Center at 800-518-4726 or support@grants.gov (24 hours a day, 7 days a week except federal holidays). If you have programmatic questions, please contact the Office on Violence Against Women at 202-307-6026.

Grant Reference Guide

OVW developed the Grant Program Reference Guide to assist potential grantees in applying for current OVW programs. The Guide offers applicants detailed assistance to all OVW Programs. This Guide is not a substitute for any of OVW's program-specific solicitations or any of the applicable statutes, regulations, or policies that govern OVW's programs. Applicants are responsible for reading each solicitation in its entirety and for following the instructions set forth in each solicitation.

OVW Grant Program Reference Guide

Resources for applicants

Grant Writing Tips
Sample Budget Detail Worksheet and Summary
Financial Guide
Federal Financial Report SF425
Budget Detail Worksheet
Sample Audit Letter
Sample Certification Letter
Sample Letter of Intent
Sample Letter of Nonsupplanting for Grant Applicants
Supplanting Examples
Sample Memorandum of Understanding
Sole Source Justification Guidelines
Standard Forms and Instructions 
Tips for Providing Match
Revised Confidentiality Acknowledgement Form

Program specific resources

Legal Assistance for Victims (LAV) Grant Applications

Sample Internal Memorandum of Understanding

Legal Assistance for Victims Grant Recipients' Policy Guidebook

Resources for other programs

Guiding Principles for Safe Havens: Supervised Visitation and Safe Exchange Grant Program

A Guide to Understanding the FY 2009 Grants to Indian Tribal Governments and Sexual Assault Services Program

Updated January 20, 2015