OVC FY 2026 Preventing Trafficking of Girls

The U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Office for Victims of Crime is offering the Preventing Trafficking of Girls funding opportunity to support prevention and early intervention services for girls and young women who are at risk of, or are victims of, human trafficking. The program supports the broader Department of Justice mission of protecting public safety, American children, and crime victims and addressing human trafficking. Funded projects may replicate and scale prevention and early intervention programs, improve identification of individuals at risk of or experiencing trafficking, and provide comprehensive and developmentally appropriate services. Services may be provided to girls and young women through age 25, and applicants should be prepared to serve survivors of both sex trafficking and labor trafficking. OVC also encourages ongoing engagement with survivors of human trafficking to inform program implementation. The program has expected total funding of $3,511,939 and anticipates making 7 grants of up to $500,000 each. Awards are expected to have a 36 month performance period beginning January 1, 2027. Projects should prevent and reduce victimization of girls at risk for sex or labor trafficking by increasing prevention, education, awareness, risk reduction, resilience building, and community support systems and by identifying and providing prevention, early intervention, or comprehensive services to girls and young women. Potential approaches include street outreach, partnerships with youth serving organizations, partnerships with juvenile justice and child welfare systems, and collaboration with community stakeholders. Generally allowable services identified by OVC include information and referral, personal advocacy and accompaniment, emotional support and health services, shelter and housing services, criminal and civil justice system assistance, education, vocational training, job readiness, and life skills development. Applicants must use funds only for reasonable, allocable, necessary, and allowable project costs. Recipients and subrecipients, including for profit organizations acting as subrecipients, must forgo profit or management fees. Funding may not be used to hold unused housing beds when others need them, provide cash or noncash incentives merely to encourage participation in services, establish victim savings accounts, provide direct cash assistance to trafficking victims, or purchase vehicles. Limited and controlled gift cards addressing urgent short term victim needs may be allowable, as may transportation, childcare, and meal assistance necessary for participation in services. Certain legal services and activities conflicting with applicable federal immigration, civil rights, or nondiscrimination laws are outside program scope or unallowable. The opportunity does not require cost sharing or matching. Eligible applicants include state governments, county governments, city or township governments, federally recognized and other Native American Tribal governments, public and state controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, public housing authorities, Indian housing authorities, qualifying nonprofit organizations with IRS 501(c)(3) status other than institutions of higher education, and other units of local government such as towns, boroughs, parishes, villages, and other general purpose political subdivisions of a state. An applicant may submit only one application. When two or more entities will carry out a project, only one may apply, while the others must be proposed as subrecipients rather than co-applicants. An entity may participate as a proposed subrecipient in more than one application. Recipients must maintain or implement required privacy and confidentiality policies, ensure staff and service providers working with trafficking victims are appropriately licensed and trained, and ensure relevant personnel participate in required grantee orientations. Submission uses a two step process. Applicants must first complete and submit the SF-424 through Grants.gov by September 29, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time. The complete application must then be submitted through JustGrants by October 6, 2026, at 8:59 p.m. Eastern Time. Required components include the SF-424, Standard Applicant Information, Proposal Narrative, and Budget. Other application materials include a proposal abstract of no more than 2,000 characters, the Financial Management and System of Internal Controls Questionnaire, Agency Funding Priorities Inventory, applicable budget and financial attachments, partner letters of intent or memoranda of understanding, applicable Tribal Authorizing Resolution, resumes or curriculum vitae, a project timeline, and required disclosures and assurances. The Proposal Narrative must be double spaced, use a standard 12 point font, have margins of at least one inch, contain numbered pages, and not exceed 8 pages. Peer review scoring allocates 5 percent to Description of the Need, 15 percent to Project Goals and Objectives, 35 percent to Project Design and Implementation, 30 percent to Capabilities and Competencies, and 15 percent to the Budget. OJP may also give priority consideration to qualifying projects that directly support law enforcement operations, combat violent crime, support services to American citizens, protect American children, or support American victims of trafficking and sexual assault, although priority consideration does not guarantee funding. Applications must be submitted by an eligible applicant, request no more than the award ceiling, and be responsive to the scope of the opportunity. Recipients will be required to submit regular performance reports, and OJP will assess progress toward the stated program goals and objectives. The NOFO was released August 20, 2026. Applicants are advised to begin SAM.gov registration or renewal as soon as possible and no later than September 15, 2026, although registration is not treated as a pre-application selection gate. The Grants.gov first step is due September 29, 2026, and the final JustGrants application is due October 6, 2026. The opportunity does not state that it is recurring or provide an award notification date. The expected award period begins January 1, 2027. Program questions may be directed to the OJP Response Center at OJP.ResponseCenter@usdoj.gov or 800-851-3420. Grants.gov assistance is available at support@grants.gov or 800-518-4726, and JustGrants assistance is available at JustGrants.Support@usdoj.gov or 833-872-5175.

Focus heavily on Project Design and Implementation and Capabilities and Competencies because they account for 35 percent and 30 percent of the application score. Demonstrate the need with supporting information, data, or evidence and directly connect goals and objectives to the NOFO. Explain how the project will address both sex and labor trafficking. Clearly identify activities, timing, staffing, beneficiaries, deliverables, partner roles, performance data capacity, and financial and administrative capacity. Keep the Proposal Narrative within 8 pages and follow the required formatting because noncompliance may reduce the score or ranking. If seeking agency priority consideration, state the applicable priorities and explain how the project advances them. Ensure the requested amount does not exceed the award ceiling and the project remains responsive to the NOFO scope.