Title 45—Public Welfare--Volume 1
PART 506—ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS FOR COMPENSATION
§ 506.1   “Civilian American citizen” defined.
Civilian American citizen means any person who, being then a citizen of the United States, was captured in Southeast Asia during the Vietnam conflict by any force hostile to the United States, or who went into hiding in Southeast Asia in order to avoid capture or internment by any such hostile force.
§ 506.2   Other definitions.
Calendar month means the period of time between a designated day of any given month and the date preceding a similarly designated day of the following month.
Citizen of the United States means a person who under applicable law acquired citizenship of the United States by birth, by naturalization, or by derivation.
Dependent husband means the surviving male spouse of a deceased civilian American citizen who was married to the deceased at the time of her death by a marriage valid under the applicable law of the place where entered into.
Force hostile to the United States means any organization or force in Southeast Asia, or any agent or employee thereof, engaged in any military or civil activities designed to further the prosecution of its armed conflict against the Armed Forces of the United States during the Vietnam conflict.
Southeast Asia means, but is not necessarily restricted to, the areas of Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia.
Went into hiding means the action taken by a civilian American citizen when that person initiated a course of conduct consistent with an intention to evade capture or detention by a hostile force in Southeast Asia.
§ 506.3   Rate of benefits payable.
Detention benefits awarded to a civilian American citizen will be paid at the rate of $150 for each calendar month of internment or during the period in which that civilian American citizen went into hiding to avoid capture and internment by a hostile force. Awards shall take account of fractional parts of a calendar month.
§ 506.4   Survivors entitled to award of detention benefits.
In case of death of a civilian American citizen who would have been entitled to detention benefits under the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended, benefits will be awarded, if claim is made, only to the following persons:
(a) Widow or husband if there is no child or children of the deceased;
(b) Widow or dependent husband and child or children of the deceased, one-half to the widow or dependent husband and the other half to the child or children in equal shares;
(c) The child or children of the deceased in equal shares if there is no widow or dependent husband, if otherwise qualified.
§ 506.5   Persons not eligible to award of civilian detention benefits.
An individual is disqualified as a “civilian American citizen” under the Act, and thus is precluded from receiving an award of detention benefits, if that person:
(a) Voluntarily, knowingly, and without duress, gave aid to or collaborated with or in any manner served the detaining hostile force; or
(b) While detained, was a regularly appointed, enrolled, enlisted, or inducted member of the Armed Forces of the United States.
§ 506.10   “Vietnam conflict” defined.
Vietnam conflict refers to the period beginning February 28, 1961, and ending on a date to be determined by Presidential proclamation or concurrent resolution of the Congress. (For purposes of determining eligibility for certain veterans' benefits, the President has proclaimed the date of May 7, 1975, to be the ending date of the “Vietnam era” (Presidential Proclamation No. 4373, 38 U.S.C. 101 note). In addition, Congress has set May 7, 1975, as the ending date of the “Vietnam conflict” for purposes of payment of interest on missing military service members' deposits in the United States Treasury under 10 U.S.C. 1035. However, neither the President nor the Congress has set an ending date for the Vietnam conflict for purposes of determining eligibility for compensation under 50 U.S.C. App. 2004 and 2005.)
§ 506.11   “Prisoner of war” defined.
Prisoner of war means any regularly appointed, enrolled, enlisted or inducted member of the Armed Forces of the United States who was held by any force hostile to the United States for any period of time during the Vietnam conflict.
§ 506.12   Membership in the Armed Forces of the United States; establishment of.
Regular appointment, enrollment, enlistment or induction in the Armed Forces of the United States must be established by certification obtained from the Department of Defense.
§ 506.13   “Armed Forces of the United States” defined.
Armed Forces of the United States means the United States Air Force, Army, Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard, and commissioned officers of the U.S. Public Health Service who were detailed for active duty with the Armed Forces of the United States.
§ 506.14   “Force hostile to the United States” defined.
Force hostile to the United States means any organization or force in Southeast Asia, or any agent or employee thereof, engaged in any military or civil activities designed to further the prosecution of its armed conflict against the Armed Forces of the United States during the Vietnam conflict.
§ 506.15   Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949.
The Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949, as identified in section 6(f) of the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended, is the “Geneva Convention Relative to the Treatment of Prisoners of War of August 12, 1949” which is included under the “Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949, for the Protection of War Victims,” entered into by the United States and other governments, including the former government in North Vietnam which acceded to it on June 28, 1957.
§ 506.16   Failure to meet the conditions and requirements prescribed under the Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949.
For the purpose of this part, obligations under the Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949, consist of the responsibility assumed by the contracting parties thereto with respect to prisoners of war within the meaning of the Convention, to comply with and to fully observe the provisions of the Convention, and particularly those articles relating to food rations of prisoners of war, humane treatment, protection, and labor of prisoners of war, and the failure to abide by the conditions and requirements established in such Convention by any hostile force with which the Armed Forces of the United States were engaged in armed conflict.
§ 506.17   Rate of and basis for award of compensation.
(a) Compensation allowed a prisoner of war during the Vietnam conflict under section 6(f)(2) of the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended, will be paid at the rate of $2 per day for each day on which that person was held as prisoner of war and on which the hostile force, or its agents, failed to furnish the quantity and quality of food prescribed for prisoners of war under the Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949.
(b) Compensation allowed a prisoner of war during the Vietnam conflict under section 6(f)(3) of the Act, will be paid at the rate of $3 per day for each day on which that person was held as a prisoner of war and on which the hostile force failed to meet the conditions and requirements under the provisions of the Geneva Convention of August 12, 1949 relating to labor of prisoners of war or for inhumane treatment by the hostile force by which such person was held.
(c) Compensation under paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section will be paid to the prisoner of war or qualified applicant on a lump-sum basis at a total rate of $5 per day for each day the prisoner of war was entitled to compensation.
§ 506.18   Entitlement of survivors to award in case of death of prisoner of war.
In case of death of a prisoner of war who would have been entitled to an award of compensation under section 6(f) (2) and (3) of the War Claims Act of 1948, as amended, the compensation will be awarded, if claim is made, only to the following persons:
(a) Widow or husband if there is no child or children of the deceased;
(b) Widow or husband and child or children of the deceased, one-half to the widow or husband and the other half to the child or children of the deceased in equal shares;
(c) Child or children of the deceased (in equal shares) if there is no widow or husband; and
(d) Parents (in equal shares) if there is no widow, husband or child.
§ 506.19   Members of the Armed Forces of the United States precluded from receiving award of compensation.
Any member of the Armed Forces of the United States, who at any time, voluntarily, knowingly, and without duress gave aid to or collaborated with, or in any manner served any force hostile to the United States, is precluded from receiving an award of compensation based on that member's capture and internment.