Economic and/or financial violence can be used interchangeably to describe a form of violence "which causes economic harm to an individual" [1]. It consists of acts, behaviours and systems that control a person’s ability to "acquire, use, and maintain economic resources" [2]. Economic violence is rarely an individual or isolated instance, but is usually part of a wider pattern used by perpetrators "to maintain power and control over their partners" [3]. In the context of Domestic violence, economic violence is commonly referred to as economic or financial abuse. It is particularly common in situations of intimate partner violence, though it is not limited to intimate partner relationships. Such violence occurs across family structures and life stages, including in marriage-related negotiations such as dowry demands, inheritance disputes, and the financial abuse of elderly people and people living with disabilities. While individuals of all genders can suffer from this type of violence, it disproportionately affects women in heterosexual relationships [4]. It often co-occurs with other forms of abuse including physical, sexual and psychological abuse. It can be "facilitated by laws and policies that cause financial disadvantage to women and girls, such as discriminatory laws relating to marriage, divorce, property, inheritance, and employment" [5].

"Economic violence is rooted in gender inequality and is reinforced by traditional gender norms" [6] and operates through three main modes:

• 1) Economic control, whereby a survivor/victim’s access to finances and related decision-making is prevented, limited, or controlled (e.g. access to money, financial assets and information is restricted; the amount of money a survivor/victim can spend or how it is spent is controlled; a survivor/victim is prevented from obtaining a bank account or making financial decisions);
• 2) Economic exploitation, whereby a survivor/victim’s economic resources are used to the abuser’s advantage (e.g. a line of credit is opened in the survivor/victim’s name by their partner without the former’s consent; the abuser accrues debt under a survivor/victim’s name; a survivor/victim’s property or resources are stolen or damaged; a survivor/victim’s wages, pensions, or other forms of financial aid are taken or diverted without permission); and
• 3) Economic sabotage, whereby a survivor/victim is prevented from pursuing, obtaining or maintaining employment and education (e.g. a survivor/victim is prevented from attending employment or educational activities; a survivor/victim’s work or education is interfered with or disrupted; refusal to contribute towards childcare responsibilities, making it impossible for survivors/victims to pursue employment/education) [7].

Not all forms of economic violence fit into these categories and its manifestations can look very different depending on the social, cultural and institutional contexts in which the violence occurs. Economic violence has a gendered and intersectional nature, in that vulnerability is shaped by factors such as race, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, disability, immigration status, socio-economic status as well as geographical location. For example, a woman living in a rural area with no or limited access to banking and financial institutions, employment or educational opportunities, may be more vulnerable to economic violence, especially if she depends on others for transportation or accompaniment to and from such opportunities. Economic violence also increasingly takes digital forms, including the use of technology to monitor financial activity, block access to banking services, or intercept and reroute income.

Council of Europe Member States that have ratified the Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (Istanbul Convention, 2011) are obliged to adopt legislative measures to prevent and combat economic violence, as well as to produce and disseminate disaggregated data on violence against women, including economic violence [8]. However, as of 2021, only nine European Union (EU) Member States had explicitly criminalised forms of economic violence in their domestic violence legislation [9].

Emerging jurisprudence over the last decade signals a growing judicial recognition of, and sensitivity to, economic violence within domestic abuse frameworks.

In Spain, the Supreme Court in STS 239/2021 (17 March 2021) explicitly discussed the deliberate self-induced insolvency of a man to avoid court-ordered maintenance as a form of economic violence affecting women’s rights and dignity, although his conviction was formally for non-payment of alimony rather than a gender-based violence offence [10].

In India, courts applying Section 3 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act 2005, which defines economic abuse as including deprivation of financial resources to which a woman is legally entitled, have recognised the denial of maintenance as economic abuse warranting protection and monetary orders [11].

In the United Kingdom, the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 became the first statute to explicitly define economic abuse as a form of domestic abuse, covering any behaviour with a substantial adverse effect on a victim’s ability to acquire, use or maintain money or property, or obtain goods and services. However, the definition remains narrow and reparations for survivors/victims inadequate [12].

Across Latin America, many states recognise economic violence as a crime. It is addressed under criminal, family, labour and civil law frameworks, and courts in several jurisdictions have developed jurisprudence recognising economic violence within domestic violence proceedings [13].

The impacts of economic violence on individuals are multifaceted, with both short- and long-term consequences for their personal and professional development and independence, economic (in)security, physical health and emotional and psychological wellbeing. It is one of primary factors constraining survivors/victims’ ability to leave abusive relationships and can impact multiple generations. Economic violence is closely linked to the feminisation of poverty, the structural phenomenon whereby women disproportionately experience poverty as a result of gender inequality, including unequal access to employment, property, and financial resources, as well as the burden of unpaid care work. "Poverty intensifies the risks of violence and violence makes women poorer" – a cycle in which economic violence plays a central role [14].