Paedophiles who were abused as children should still be eligible for compensation, South Australia's Commissioner for Victims' Rights Michael O'Connell believes.

Under a proposed Federal Government redress scheme, victims who have been convicted of certain crimes including sex offences would not be entitled to payments, which would be capped at $150,000.

But Mr O'Connell said it had been his long-standing view, developed in the wake of South Australia's Mullighan inquiry, that all abuse victims should be able to access compensation.

He has made the case in a submission to the Senate in direct response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse.

"Those people — no matter who they have become later in life — had their innocence stolen," Mr O'Connell said.

"We should recognise that they deserve to be vindicated for what happened to them.

"What I'm suggesting is not ... that people who commit crime should not be held to account or that they should be excused for their crime."

The commissioner admitted that some might consider the proposal to be controversial, but said the public needed to consider it carefully before passing judgement.

"Some aren't going to see the sense of what I'm proposing," he said.

"But I do emphasise that any money that a person who is now a convicted sex offender may get, could be used for the treatment, therefore to reduce the likelihood that they will reoffend.

"It could be used for their reintegration into the community instead of taxpayers having to pay for that or it could be used to put into trust so that the victims of that person's crime, children who that person may have abused, can themselves seek compensation."

Under a federal redress scheme, victims would be eligible for up to $150,000 in compensation. ( Flickr: lukesaagi )

Compensation payments for sexual abuse victims in South Australia are currently capped at $50,000.

Mr O'Connell also called on the State Government to support the more generous federal scheme currently under consideration.

But Attorney-General John Rau said SA differed from others states because of its ex-gratia compensation scheme for victims.

"As a result, victims have secured compensation without going through unnecessary litigation which can be traumatic and which requires far higher standards of proof," Mr Rau said in a statement.

Last year, Adelaide man Ian — who was jailed in 1997 for raping a woman — shared his story with The World Today.

From the age of six months, he lived in some of Victoria's worst institutions, where he was mentally, physically and sexually abused.

He said he lived in at least seven different children's homes, including the now notorious Turana Youth Training Centre and Baltara Reception Centre in Parkville.

After spending years in and out of prison, he turned his life around after serving time for the rape charge.

In recent years he gave evidence in a private hearing as part of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sex Abuse.

He said while it was good to be heard, when he found out he would not be eligible for compensation as part of the Federal Government's redress scheme he was "furious".

The scheme excludes anyone convicted of sex offences, or sentenced to prison for five years or more for drugs, homicide or fraud.