Cross of Valour (Australia)

The Cross of Valour was established in 1975 as the highest Australian Bravery Award. The awards were established as part of the institution of the Australian Honours System. The Cross of Valour has been awarded to five Australian civilians and, although there has been no Australian military recipient, they would be eligible in situations where normal honours to the military do not apply.
The Cross of Valour is awarded "only for acts of the most conspicuous courage in circumstances of extreme peril". The award carries the post-nominal initials CV; awards may be made posthumously.
List of recipients.
To date, the Cross of Valour has been awarded to five recipients.
Decoration allowance.
The Australian Department of Veterans' Affairs may grant an allowance, called decoration allowance, to a veteran who has been awarded the Cross of Valour if the veteran is in receipt of a pension under Part II of the Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986 (VE Act) and the award was for gallantry during a war to which the VE Act applies or during warlike operations. So far there have been no awards of the Cross of Valour during wars or warlike operations as required by the VE Act. The allowance has been A$2.10 per fortnight since the Goods and Services Tax in Australia commenced on 1 July 2000.