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Your 9/11 Family Plan

For anyone who lost a spouse, parent, child, brother, sister, aunt or uncle on 9/11. Move the sliders and see where the compensation money sits, how long it lasts, and what’s still open.

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Sirmium Capital · Sample plan · October 2026

Sample plan: how it works

This sample is for anyone who lost a family member on 9/11 and now holds, or expects, compensation money. It follows one made-up household through what a full plan covers, in the order a planner works through it: income, the emergency fund, where the money sits, taxes, the claim itself, college, documents and inflation. Move the sliders and the plan updates.

Who can claim Whether a relative can claim depends on each fund's own rules and, for the USVSST Fund, on holding a qualifying final court judgment. Being related to someone who died is not enough on its own, so your lawyer is the one to confirm where you stand. Among USVSST claims, family members who aren't the victim's spouse or dependent, such as many brothers, sisters and parents, share a lower cap: $20 million for the family group in total, against $35 million for a group of victims, spouses and dependents.

Every figure here is made up. The household, the family and every dollar amount are examples, chosen to show how a plan works. None of it is a real person's data. The real rules on the page are the tax treatment of VCF and USVSST payments, the 2026 federal tax brackets, the USVSST Fund's published rules, and the Social Security rules listed in the sources at the bottom.

Summary

Plan health score

Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

Where the compensation money sits

Bank rates move. This one is an example.

Cash above the example target
Target cashAbove target

Our fee
Bank money in 20 years, today's buying power
Same money invested with us, after our fee

Invested money can fall in value, and the market-drop box in the next section shows what a bad first year does. Cash is steady but loses buying power when its rate trails inflation. A plan keeps the money you'll need soon in cash and invests the rest for the years after that.

How the plan treats future USVSST paymentsUSVSST payments are made pro rata from whatever money the Fund has, and the Fund says there is no way to predict what share of a claim will be paid. The Special Master will authorize seventh-round payments for all eligible claims by January 1, 2027, and on October 16, 2026 the Fund said $320 million is available for that round ($160 million for 9/11-related claimants). This sample counts a USVSST payment only after it arrives, so nothing in the plan depends on the next round.
If you also have a VCF claimThe two funds affect each other in one direction only. A VCF award never reduces a USVSST payment. A USVSST payment reduces a VCF award only when both are for the same victim, and only for USVSST money already paid or authorized when the VCF decides. So a USVSST claim over a relative's death is not offset against a VCF award for your own illness or injury.
Plan assumptions

Inflation and growth

Raises spending and college costs, and shrinks what money left in the bank buys.
Show amounts in
What $1 today buys in 20 years

Growth on this page is shown after inflation, so a figure in today's dollars buys what that many dollars buy now. Future dollars are the larger numbers you'd see printed on a statement.

Step 1 · Understanding your circumstances

Your situation (example)

Cash flow and emergency fund

Months of spending covered

SpendingSavingLeft over
Step 2 · Identifying and selecting goals

Your goals (example)

    Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

    Income for the long run

    In today's dollars. The plan raises it with inflation every year.

    The money lasts until

    In the bankInvested
    Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

    Taxes on these payments

    Each kind of payment has its own tax rule. The award or payment itself and the interest it earns afterwards are taxed differently.

    PaymentFederal income taxNew York income tax
    VCF awardNot included in income (IRS Publication 3920)Not included in New York income for survivors (NYS Publication 59)
    USVSST paymentNo blanket rule. Damages, other than punitive damages, received on account of physical injury or death are generally excluded (Internal Revenue Code §104(a)(2)). Punitive damages and interest are generally taxable. How that applies to a relative's own claim is a question for your tax professional. The Fund issues no Form 1099.Ask your tax professional
    Survivor annuity paid to the child or spouse of a police officer or firefighter killed in the line of dutyGenerally not included in income (IRS Publication 3920)Not included to the extent it's excluded federally (NYS Publication 59)
    Interest and gains the money earns after you receive itTaxableTaxable

    Federal tax on the bank interest, this year

    Tax items (tick what the example family has done)

      Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

      Your USVSST claim, and protecting your family

        If anyone in the household gets SSI or Medicaid A large payment can affect SSI. For SSI, a lump sum generally counts as income in the month it arrives, and what's left counts as a resource from the next month. The SSI resource limit is $2,000 for one person and $3,000 for a couple. No Social Security rule names the VCF or the USVSST Fund. Social Security Disability Insurance and Medicare are not based on what you own. Medicaid in New York is decided by the state. Talk to a benefits professional before the money arrives.
        If you're a surviving spouse, or the child of a firefighter or police officer Survivor pensions, City health coverage and survivor-annuity tax rules can add steps this example doesn't show. Your pension fund confirms what applies to you, and a full plan builds them in.
        Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

        College savings in a 529

        529 when college starts

        Step 3 · Analyzing your course of action

        Beneficiaries and estate documents

        These cost little to put in place and decide who gets what, and who can act for you. Tick what the example family already has. Your ticks stay in this browser only.

          Steps 4 and 5 · Developing and presenting recommendations

          Decisions your plan answers

          This sample shows the decisions and what moves them. A full plan answers each one with your own figures.

            Steps 6 and 7 · Implementing and monitoring

            Next steps (example dates)

              Your own plan

              What working with us adds

              This sample runs on made-up figures and simplified rules. A plan with us runs on yours.

              This sampleYour plan with us
              FiguresMade-up examplesYour payment notices, award letters and account statements
              RulesSimplified, with tax figures for 2026Your own tax picture, checked with your tax professional
              ReviewYou read it aloneA one-on-one review with our team, with time for your questions
              UpdatesFixed as of October 2026Updated every year, and when a new payment arrives
              AccountsNot includedHelp opening an account for the money, if you decide to invest it
              Planning is free. If you hire us to manage your investments, the fee is 2% a year of the assets we manage for accounts under $1.1 million, and 1% a year for first responders, active military, reserve and veterans. Above $1.1 million, the fee is 0.5% a year of assets plus 25% of any return above 4% in a year. There's no obligation to hire us after the plan.
              Good to have ready
                Get your own plan with your real numbers Starts with a free 15-minute call. Opens the 9/11 Families page at sirmiumcapital.com.

                Contents

                Read the rest of the plan

                The rest of the plan is here when you’re ready: income for the long run, taxes on these payments, your USVSST claim and the documents that protect your family.

                1. 01Plan health scoreRead
                2. 02Where the compensation money sitsRead
                3. 03Inflation and growthLocked
                4. 04Your situationLocked
                5. 05Your goalsLocked
                6. 06Income for the long runLocked
                7. 07Taxes on these paymentsLocked
                8. 08Your USVSST claim, and protecting your familyLocked
                9. 09College savings in a 529Locked
                10. 10Beneficiaries and estate documentsLocked
                11. 11Decisions your plan answersLocked
                12. 12Next stepsLocked
                13. 7 more chapters

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                Sources for the rules on this page
                • VCF payments not included in federal income: IRS Publication 3920, "Tax Relief for Victims of Terrorist Attacks" (rev. September 2014, still the current edition on irs.gov, read October 8, 2026), and 26 U.S.C. §139(f). Not included in New York adjusted gross income for survivors: NYS Publication 59 (rev. 2/15), p.9.
                • USVSST payments: no blanket exclusion; 26 U.S.C. §104(a)(2) excludes damages other than punitive damages received on account of physical injury or sickness; 34 U.S.C. §20144(j)(3) (compensatory damages exclude interest and punitive damages); USVSST Fund FAQ 4.15 (no Form 1099; questions go to a tax professional).
                • Survivor annuity paid to the child or spouse (or former spouse) of a public safety officer killed in the line of duty: IRS Publication 3920, "Payments to Survivors of Public Safety Officers"; NYS Publication 59, pp.10-11.
                • Who can claim from the USVSST Fund: claims for compensatory damages awarded to a United States person in a final judgment against a state sponsor of terrorism, 34 U.S.C. §20144(c); USVSST Fund FAQ 2.1. Lower $20 million cap for a group of "9/11 family members" (immediate family who are not the victim's spouse or dependent) and $35 million for victims, spouses and dependents: 34 U.S.C. §20144(d)(3)(A)(ii) and (j)(12); USVSST Fund FAQ 4.2.
                • USVSST payments are pro rata and can't be predicted: USVSST Fund FAQs 4.1 and 4.13. Seventh distribution announced July 17, 2026 (payments authorized for all eligible claims by January 1, 2027): Special Master's announcement, usvsst.com. $320 million available for the seventh distribution, $160 million for each half: Special Master's announcement of October 16, 2026, usvsst.com/Home/Announcements?id=20261016. One claim covers all rounds: FAQ 4.4. Payment needs complete documentation: usvsst.com, Distributions and Payments. Attorney fees capped at 15% of each 9/11-related payment made after November 21, 2019, with criminal penalties: 34 U.S.C. §20144(f). Claim continues for the estate through a personal representative: FAQs 3.9 and 6.3. Accepting a payment keeps your right to the unpaid balance: 34 U.S.C. §20144(d)(5).
                • The VCF offsets USVSST payments made for the same victim only: VCF Policies and Procedures, Section 3.9, and VCF FAQ 1.12 (vcf.gov). A VCF award does not reduce a USVSST payment: USVSST FAQs 4.6 and 4.8.
                • SSI: Social Security POMS SI 00830.515, SI 01110.600 and SI 01110.003; Medicaid: POMS SI 01715.010.
                • 2026 federal tax brackets and standard deductions: IRS Revenue Procedure 2025-32, sections on taxable year 2026.
                • The advisory fee: Sirmium Capital Form ADV Part 2A (dated June 28, 2025), Item 5.A (2% for accounts under $1.1 million; 1% for first responders, active military, reserve or veterans) and Item 6 (above $1.1 million: 0.5% of assets plus 25% of profits above a 4% threshold).
                • Every wage, spending, payment, savings, Social Security, bank-rate, return and cost figure is an example chosen for this sample.

                If you have us manage the compensation money, we are paid on it. If you keep it in the bank or elsewhere, we are not.

                Sirmium Capital LLC is a New York state-registered investment adviser and is not registered with the SEC. Every figure in this document describes odds under a set of assumptions; a projection is not a promise and nobody can promise an investment outcome. Nothing here is an offer or a solicitation in any jurisdiction where we are not registered or exempt, and nothing here creates an advisory relationship; ongoing advisory services are provided only under a signed advisory agreement. Your accountant and your attorney are the right people for tax and legal questions, and their answers beat ours.