On January 19, 2017, the Western Union Company (Western Union) entered into a deferred prosecution agreement (DPA) with the United States. Pursuant to the DPA, Western Union acknowledged responsibility for its criminal conduct, which included violations of the Bank Secrecy Act and aiding and abetting wire fraud, and agreed to forfeit $586 million, which has been made available to compensate victims of the international consumer fraud scheme through the remission process. Western Union simultaneously resolved a parallel civil investigation with the Federal Trade Commission.

The scheme, investigated by the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, involved the targeting of consumers by fraudsters through multiple scams. These scams included the grandparent scam, where the fraudster would pose as the victim’s relative in need of immediate money to avoid personal harm, the lottery or sweepstakes scams, where the fraudster would tell the victim that they had won a large cash prize but had to pay fees such as taxes to claim the prize, and the romance scams, where the fraudster would pose as an online love interest and request funds for a visit or for another purpose. In each of these scams the fraudsters convinced their victims to send money through Western Union, and no victims received the promised cash, prize, or promoted item.

The money paid by Western Union will be made available to victims through a process called "remission." The remission process is governed by the Code of Federal Regulations, Title 28, Part 9. If you file a petition for remission detailing the loss amount, DOJ’s Money Laundering and Asset Recovery Section will compare the requests to Western Union’s records and decide whether to grant the petition. After DOJ has reviewed all petitions, approved petitioners will get payment for some or all of their approved loss. 

You may be eligible for a remission payment if you sent a money transfer through Western Union between January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020, and were the victim of fraud.  

To apply, you must file a Petition for Remission. We mailed many victims petitions with pre-populated loss amounts. Those forms can be returned online or in the mail to the remission administrator. Note, they cannot be submitted via email. If you didn’t get a pre-filled petition, but believe you were a victim of the fraud related to this remission, you may file a petition online or download and print a copy of a petition form and mail it in.

You have been identified as a potential victim of the Western Union fraud scheme underlying the $586 million forfeiture for transfers that occurred between January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020.

You may only file a petition for remission for newly discovered or additional transactions between January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020 that were not previously submitted.

No, petitioners who were previously denied because their claimed transactions were outside the previous time period (between January 1, 2004 and January 19, 2017) but are now within the new extended time period (between January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020) do not need to resubmit a petition. On June 25, 2025, these petitioners were sent new letters informing them that their petitions have been granted. This grant notice letter included a check for the transactions that were documented and verified and a list of the approved transactions. If you have not received a letter by July 14, 2025, please contact us by phone at 1-833-419-4677 or email at [email protected]. If you have additional transactions that you have not previously submitted, you must file a new petition for remission.

If your claimed transactions were after March 9, 2020, your petition remains denied.

The submission deadline for Petitions for Remission is September 23, 2025. Petitions for Remission must be postmarked or submitted online on or before September 23, 2025. The acceptance of mailed Petitions for Remission postmarked after this date will be subject to the Justice Department’s discretion.

You may file a petition online using the PIN and ClaimID provided on the first page of the letter received and upload your documentation online or mail the petition to:

United States v. The Western Union Company Phase 3

PO Box 301132

Los Angeles, CA 90030-1132

Please do not send original documents. Note, petitions for remission and supporting documentation cannot be submitted via email.

If you did not receive a pre-populated petition form, please download one from the Case Documents tab and mail it in, or submit a petition form electronically. 

If you agree with the Consumer Fraud Report Loss, please check the “Agree: I have reviewed the enclosed Transaction Summary and agree with the amount listed above.” circle in the Consumer Fraud Report section, sign, date, print your name and complete the Social Security Number section on the form. The Consumer Fraud Report Loss amount will be used as your loss amount for processing your petition for remission.

You do not need to complete the Supplemental Transaction Form. Please keep a copy of the Supplemental Transaction Form and your supporting documentation for your records.

If you disagree with the loss amount printed on your petition, fill out the information on the Supplemental Transaction Form included in the petition and supply documentation to support your claim.  Acceptable documentation includes the Western Union money transfer send form and receipt and information detailing the fraud. Please do not send original documents.  Please keep a copy of the Supplemental Transaction Form and your supporting documentation for your records. Supporting documentation can be submitted online or via mail to the remission administrator. Note, they cannot be submitted via email.

All wire transfers made within and outside of the United States through Western Union between January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020, and are a result of the fraud scheme, may be eligible for remission.

The Consumer Fraud Report Loss is based on the fraud losses you reported to Western Union resulting from money transfers made within the period of eligibility (January 1, 2004 and March 9, 2020).  If you received a petition that includes a recognized loss amount, your Consumer Fraud Report Loss is identified in the Consumer Fraud Report box and your reported transactions are detailed on the Transaction Summary page.

If you reported losses to Western Union, the Consumer Fraud Report Loss is used to calculate the amount of your remission payment.  The payment is based only on the amount of the money transfer(s) and does not include collateral expenses such as wire transfer fees, incidental losses, or transfers sent through other companies.

If you received a pre-populated petition, the Transaction Total is the total number of fraudulent transactions you made through Western Union, according to our records.

The amount you receive will be based on the eligible amount you lost minus any refund you have already received. Your payment will be based only on the amount of the money transfer. You cannot recover collateral expenses such as Western Union fees, incidental losses, or transfers sent through other businesses are not recoverable through the remission process. 

If your petition is approved, it must be reviewed by the Treasury Offset Program to verify that you do not owe any money to the federal government or certain state debts. If you owe money, your payment will be used to pay your debt. If your payment is more than the amount you owe, you will receive the remainder.

If the person who transferred money is deceased, please submit the petition and SSN in the name and number of the deceased.

If you are not a US Citizen, please select the “I am not a U.S. Citizen” option.

If you are not a U.S. Citizen and do not have a Social Security Number (SSN) or Individual Taxpayer Identification Number (ITIN), please indicate on the petition provided. Please check “I am not a U.S. Citizen.”

No. You are not required to be a United States citizen or in the United States to file a petition.

The Money Transfer Control Number (MTCN) is a ten-digit unique number assigned to your transfer. For money transfers initiated at WU.com or in the Western Union app, the MTCN is available on the email confirmation for the money transfer. For money transfers initiated in person, the MTCN is available on the printed receipt.

You may file a petition online using the PIN and Claim ID provided on the first page of the letter received and upload your documentation online or mail the petition to the remission administrator at United States V. The Western Union Company Phase 3, P.O. Box 301132, Los Angeles, CA 90030-1132. Please do not send original documents.  Note, they cannot be submitted via email.

You will need to visit the Western Union website and request a Copy of Money Transfer Receipt. You will complete the form and click “Submit.” The information will be mailed to you once all elements are received approximately within 7-14 days.

The link can be found on the Western Union Remission website: (https://www.westernunion.com/self-service-form/carf-form)

According to the Western Union website, you can request a receipt by completing and accurately filling out the transactional history request form:

1. Go to the Transactional History Request Form

2. Complete the form and click “Submit.”

Records are available going back 10 years, which is Western Union’s current record retention policy.

Please submit any documentation, such as customer receipts, to support your submission that you do have.

Yes, however, the amount of foreign currency must match the supporting documentation. Note that loss amounts will be determined in U.S. dollars using historical currency conversion.

No, you do not need an attorney to file a petition.

No. The Department of Justice does not charge fees for you to participate in the remission process.

Yes. If the person who transferred money is deceased, please submit the petition in the name of the deceased and include verification of the death and documents showing that you represent the estate. Please do not send original documents. Typical documents needed: Death Certificate, Requestor’s photo ID, and documentation showing they are the representative of the estate (i.e. Will, Estate, Probate, marriage certificate etc).

All requests for name changes must be in writing. Supporting documentation issued by a court, local, state, or federal government agency, or foreign jurisdiction must be provided, such as the following:

Marriage

• Marriage license or similar document
• Government Issued Photo ID

Divorce

• Divorce decree or similar document
• Government Issued Photo ID

Typo

• Government Issued Photo ID

Power of Attorney (POA)

• Documents that show that the person making requests is POA for the petitioner

Please do not send original documents. Once all supporting documentation is received, the request will be reviewed. Please be patient.

We cannot provide an estimated time but please check the remission website for updated information. The Department of Justice is committed to working as expeditiously as possible to compensate victims. Check www.WesternUnionRemissionPhase3.com for updates on the status of the process.

A Form-1099 or other tax form is not included with the payment.  If you have any questions about potential tax issues as a result of this award, we recommend that you consult a professional tax consultant. As the remission administrator, we cannot provide you with tax advice.

For the latest information about the remission process:

• Check the website www.WesternUnionRemissionPhase3.com
• Email [email protected]
• Or call 1-833-419-4677