The No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) condition should never stop survivors from seeking help and safety. However, the NRPF condition can make it much harder for survivors to flee abuse.
This is due to the limited availability of financial and accommodation support from the state. Much of the support typically available to survivors of domestic abuse in Scotland, including is classified as a “public fund”.
Survivors with NRPF often find themselves in a dangerous position. Forced to choose between remaining with an abuser or facing poverty and homelessness.
Perpetrators often weaponise their partner’s insecure immigration status. This includes falsely threatening them with deportation to prevent them from seeking help. Despite this, there are legal protections available. Individuals with certain visa types and in certain situations can apply for schemes that provide access to public funds or accelerate settlement.
To read more into this, please visit the NRPF and GBVA page.
See below for a variety of resources that may help you with your journey to safety.
The Domestic Abuse Team is a voluntary service which provides short to medium term support and advice to victims of domestic abuse to help them address the effects the behaviour of their partner/ex-partner has had on them.
They can support individuals with safety planning to reduce risk, as well as with practical and emotional support.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Abused Men In Scotland (AMIS) supports male victims of domestic abuse across Scotland. They operate a free, confidential national helpline, host a website with relevant information, and provide training services.
They also signpost to local in-person support providers across the country.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Advocacy Service Aberdeen (ASA) provides an independent advocacy service for victims of domestic abuse. Clients can self-refer to a Domestic Abuse Advocate or be referred by a professional they are working with for assistance with specific issues. They are not part of the NHS, Aberdeen City Council or any other service provider.
Their service is free and confidential, and all staff and volunteers work to The Scottish Independent Advocacy Alliance’s (SIAA) Principles and Standards and Code of Practice.
You can reach them in the following ways:
This factsheet, created by the Asylum Support Appeals Project, updated in February 2026, explains how the Home Office, its accommodation contractors, and Migrant Help should respond when an asylum seeker experiences domestic abuse and needs safe housing and support.
The guidance applies to all survivors of domestic abuse seeking asylum.
You can reach ASAP in the following ways:
EVAA offers support for women experiencing gender based abuse, including physical, emotional, financial or sexual abuse, sexual exploitation, human trafficking and coercive control, and support for women, men and families (or people) experiencing domestic abuse.
EVAA provides immediate safety and housing support, emotional and psychological care, practical advocacy (including hate-crime reporting), and long-term recovery support.
You can reach them in the following ways:
FGM Aware is a project from the Women’s Support Project, based in Glasgow, providing resources and information to help tackle female genital mutilation in Scotland.
The Women’s Support Project works across Scotland to raise awareness of the root causes and impact of male violence, supports multiagency approaches, and addresses links between different forms of violence and abuse.
You can contact them in the following ways:
Grampian Women’s Aid offers a free, confidential and non-judgmental specialist service to women, children and young people in Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire who have experienced domestic abuse. You can leave a telephone message at any time. They will contact you only if you authorise it and confirm it is safe to do so; your telephone number is always withheld.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Hemat Gryffe, a Glasgow-based Women’s Aid charity, has developed two short, accessible animated videos introducing domestic abuse and Honour-Based Abuse.
These animations explain what domestic abuse is and labour-based abuse and are free to watch on YouTube. They are available in multiple languages, including English, Urdu, Ukrainian, Russian, Punjabi, Polish, Hindi, Chinese, Bengali, Arabic, Romanian, and British Sign Language.
You can contact Hemat Gryffe in the following ways
Karma Nirvana provides support for anyone affected by Honour-Based Abuse or facing forced marriage in the UK. Their services include the national Honour Based Abuse Helpline, which offers free, confidential emotional and practical support, and a trauma-informed counselling service for survivors.
All helpline support is confidential. They offer specific guidance for individuals seeking help, professionals, and those worried about someone else.
You can reach them in the following ways:
The National FGM Centre is a partnership between Barnardo’s and the Local Government Association, working to achieve system change in services for children and families affected by female genital mutilation, breast flattening, and child abuse linked to faith or belief.
The Centre provides a range of free resources for professionals, including a harmful practices e-learning tool, lesson plans for schools, a direct work toolkit for social workers, and guidance for educational settings on safeguarding pathways and reporting concerns.
You can contact them in the following ways:
Pathways from Abuse is a dedicated domestic abuse counselling service for women across Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, offering 1-1 counselling to help women address the feelings and concerns arising from Abuse to improve their quality of life.
The service is delivered by a team of experienced counsellors, either face-to-face in Aberdeen City or via telephone/Skype for those unable to travel, and women do not need to have left the perpetrator to be eligible. There is typically a waiting list for support.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Rape Crisis Grampian (RCG) is a charity that provides support to people of any gender, over the age of 11 years, who have been subjected to sexual violence at any time in their lives. They offer a variety of support tailored to the individual. Support is provided by trained practitioners in a safe environment, giving the individual space and time to discuss their experience without judgment.
Individuals can self-refer using the RCG’s self-referral form; an up-to-date copy is attached above.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Rights of Women is a London-based women’s charity. They produce policy and research insights and provide advice lines for women seeking support. They provide legal support, but only for cases in England and Wales
They have information on asylum and immigration on their website here.
You can reach them in the following ways:
This animation, created by Karma Nirvana, is designed to help professionals and the public understand Honour-Based Abuse (HBA). Using the visual metaphor of a tree, it illustrates how HBA is rooted in controlling beliefs that prioritise perceived ‘honour’ over an individual’s safety and wellbeing.
The video clearly emphasises that Honour-Based Abuse is not a cultural tradition or religious practice but is instead a form of abuse.
You can reach Karma Niravana in the following ways:
Sahara Scotland, operated by Amina MWRC, is a specialist Independent Domestic Abuse Advocacy (IDAA) service providing culturally sensitive casework for Muslim and Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) women in Scotland who are at risk of or experiencing domestic abuse and hold insecure immigration status.
It offers dedicated one-to-one support, including crisis intervention, risk assessment, safety planning, advocacy, and emotional support in community languages. Individuals can self-refer.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Support is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week on Scotland’s Domestic Abuse and Forced Marriage Helpline. The helpline operates to support anyone experiencing domestic abuse or forced marriage, as well as their family members, friends, colleagues and professionals who support them.
They provide a confidential, sensitive service to anyone who calls us. The site is also available in Arabic, Chinese, French, Polish, Punjabi, Spanish, and Urdu.
You can reach them in the following ways:
The fund offers women based in Scotland up to £1,000 for essentials to support the costs of leaving, planning to leave or staying left from an abusive relationship. This might include costs related to moving home or increasing safety to enable a woman to remain in her own home. Women with NRPF are encouraged to apply.
The Fund to Leave is funded by the Scottish Government and coordinated by Scottish Women’s Aid. It is a limited fund of £1.5 million, available until the 30th June or will close sooner if the funding has been spent. Grampian Women’s Aid is a listed fund delivery partner; their contact details are on this page.
Scottish Women’s Rights Centre (SWRC) provides free, specialist legal advice, representation, and advocacy to promote access to justice for women aged 16+ who are survivors of gender based violence, including domestic abuse, honour-based abuse, rape and sexual violence.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Although Shakti Women’s Aid does not have an office in the North East, it has advisors who can help applicants apply for the ‘Support for Migrant Victims’ (SMV) scheme from any location in Scotland.
This is a fund for survivors of gender-based abuse and their children, which can provide housing and financial support. Priority will be given to those survivors who do not currently have an established route to settlement.
You can reach them in the following ways:
The Sundial Centre provides a free, online Learning Centre that explains what harmful practices are and how to recognise them. This includes definitions and educational materials for professionals, volunteers, and community members working with survivors of domestic abuse, early and forced marriage, Female Genital Mutilation (FGM), and other forms of gender-based harm.
You can contact Sundial in the following ways:
The Financial Support Line for Victims of Domestic Abuse is run by Money Advice Plus, SEA’s frontline partner. It offers specialist advice to anyone experiencing domestic abuse who is in financial difficulty.
Calls are free of charge. For callers whose first language is not English, an interpretation service is available on request.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Surviving Economic Abuse (SEA) is the only UK charity dedicated to raising awareness of economic abuse and transforming responses to it.
They host an extensive Economic Abuse Guide designed to help potential victims identify potential abuse and understand their options thereafter.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Restore is a project of Catalyst Vineyard Church in Aberdeen, creating a safe, trauma-informed space for women affected by domestic abuse, the sex industry, or other vulnerable life circumstances. Support is accessed via self-referral or professional referral.
Services are available to women of all faiths or none, with no expectation of church attendance. The project offers one-to-one support, emergency ‘Bags of Dignity’, employability placements in a boutique, skills workshops, and connections to wider support services.
You can reach them in the following ways:
Trafficking Awareness Raising Alliance (TARA) Scotland is a specialist service supporting adults (16+) who have experienced human trafficking for sexual exploitation, labour exploitation, or domestic servitude.
They provide practical and emotional support, advocacy, and help individuals navigate complex systems such as the asylum and criminal justice systems. For referrals or more information, professionals or individuals can visit their website.
You can get in touch with TARA in the following ways: