Guidance

Bereavement information for Cyprus north

Updated 12 January 2021

Disclaimer

This information is not meant to be definitive, nor is it to be taken as a substitute for independent legal advice. Neither His Majesty’s Government nor its staff take any responsibility for the accuracy of the information, nor accept liability for any loss, costs, damage or expense that you might suffer as a result of relying on the information. Some of the information may not be relevant to your circumstances. The language used is intended to be general and factual, and is not meant to cause offence.

Introduction

When a relative or friend dies abroad, the different procedures, laws or language can cause additional distress. You may be uncertain about what to do or who to contact.

This country specific information is designed to help you through some of the practical arrangements you may need to make. It supplements the general information on death abroad produced by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, which applies to all countries.

www.gov.uk/government/publications/coping-with-death-abroad

Please note, as each country has its own laws and customs when a death occurs, it may not be possible to make the arrangements that you prefer, or at the time you would like.

How to contact the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office

There is a lot of information below, but you may have questions. You can speak to someone by phone 24/7, any day of the year by contacting the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office in London on 0207 008 1500.

You can find the contact details for the British High Commission in Nicosia below:

Consular Section, British High Commission, Alexander Pallis St., PO Box 21978, 1587 Nicosia, Republic of Cyprus

Tel: 0392 22838761 or 00357 22861100 (follow the Consular option & emergency option out of hours)
Fax: +357 22861200 (Consular)
Use our contact form
Website: www.gov.uk/government/world/cyprus

The priority of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is to provide assistance to UK Nationals overseas who need the most help. The level and type of assistance they can offer is tailored to the individual circumstances of each case.

Next of kin

The next of kin of the person who died will usually need to make decisions and practical arrangements. The next of kin can sometimes appoint another person to act on their behalf.

If you are not the next of kin, they will need to be informed. If required, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office can help you do this.

When someone dies in the north of Cyprus and the next of kin is in the UK or abroad, the north authorities do not notify the British High Commission. Consular staff are generally informed by family, friends or neighbours.

Once Consular staff are made aware, they will do whatever they can to trace the next of kin as soon as possible and would ask the UK police to pass on the sad news. However, you might also be notified about the death directly by someone else, for example a friend/neighbour, doctor, a social worker, a police officer or from social media/local news.

There is no legal definition of next of kin in the UK. Please note that if there is a disagreement over who is the next of kin, or the person who died did not choose a next of kin, this can cause additional complications and delays.

Release of information to next of kin

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office will try to obtain as much information as possible after your relative or friend has died abroad. Some of this may be only available to next of kin. Consular staff may be able to obtain this themselves, or they may put you in touch directly with the authorities overseas. They may be able to provide you with details of others who can advocate on your behalf such as lawyers, charities, or other organisations.

Inquiries into deaths in the north of Cyprus are not public. Access to information concerning a death such as post-mortem reports, toxicology and histopathology results, medical and police reports is restricted. The release of any information will usually take several months and in some more complicated instances, years if at all. In some cases in order to have access to the investigation and obtain information from the court or police files, the next of kin may have to make their request via a lawyer.

Many local authorities in the north of Cyprus generally to not have the ability to make international calls and do not routinely use e-mail.

What to do following a death

Insurance

It is very important to check if the person who died had any form of insurance. Be that local life insurance for a resident or travel insurance for a tourist.

If they had insurance, contact the company as soon as possible to establish if they are able to cover the expenses and make the relevant arrangements.

You may need the insurance policy number and the associated 24-hour medical emergency contact number to do this. If the insurance company confirm that there is a current policy, they will appoint the funeral director both locally and in the UK.

If the person who died is an insured tourist, repatriation to the UK will most likely take place via the Republic of Cyprus.

If the person who died is not covered by insurance and the next of kin wish to repatriate, they will have to appoint a funeral director in Cyprus or an international funeral director in UK and will be responsible for all costs. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office cannot assist with these costs.

Please note that an insurance policy may be void if the death is alcohol or drug related.

Death whilst in hospital

If the death occurred whilst being treated in the hospital post mortems do not normally take place unless they are unable to identify the cause of death.

Once the cause of death has been verified the doctor will issue a Medical Certificate of Death (Olum Nedenleri Belgesi). Please note this is not a Death Certificate.

Once the Medical Certificate of Death certificate has been obtained, a local funeral can take place. It is not necessary to obtain an official Death Certificate in order to arrange a local funeral. The hospital may issue a Death Certificate for their own purpose but this should not be used before the funeral has taken place. The death certificate should be arranged after the funeral has taken place.

Both private and state hospitals do not allow the removal of the person who died until all medical fees have been paid. In state hospitals payment can only be made in Turkish Lira but this can be done seven days per week between 0800 and 1800. In state you will need to obtain the medical file from the ward in which he/she was being treated and take this to the payment booth.

Private hospitals have a practice of retaining the person’s passport/ID as security when they are admitted to the hospital which will be returned when payment it made.

Death at home/outside of the hospital

When a death occurs at home or outside of a hospital the police are always called. An ambulance will more than likely attend and a doctor will also be called out. The person who died will not be taken away by the ambulance and arrangements will need to be made with the local district office (Belediye) for collection. This may not occur until the next morning if the death occurred at night.

The person who died will be taken to the local hospital and kept there until the funeral or repatriation. Post mortems normally always take place following a sudden death. If the person who died had been receiving medical treatment and the treating doctor is able to verify the cause of death, there may not be a requirement for a post mortem.

Registering the death and obtaining a death certificate

The death needs to be registered with the local authorities in the country where the person died.

If the person who died was not resident or officially working in the north of Cyprus and was declared deceased at the local state hospital, a death certificate can be issued directly by the hospital. This is a very basic photocopied piece of paper that the doctor at the hospital completes. This can be provided in English and an additional copy can be requested at the time of issue. The hospital should stamp the document.

Please note that whilst this certificate may be adequate for repatriation you could have difficulties using this in the UK when dealing with legal matters. It is therefore recommended that you register with the local authorities.

If the person who died was resident in north Cyprus and either had a Kimlik Card (ID Card) or a work or residency permit in their passport a local death registration is required.

Once you have the Medical Certificate of Death (Olum Nedenleri Belgesi) you can start the process of obtaining a local death certificate. The forms to register the death can be obtained from any District Office. The District Office Application for Death Registration must be completed in triplicate. You then need to have these forms signed by the doctor who completed the cause of death certificate and the local muhtar (in the district where the person died). The Muhtar or Ortakoy usually signs in situations where a post mortem has been necessary, as most post mortem are conducted in Nicosia.

Return the completed registration forms to the District Office where the death occurred. You may request additional copies.

You will also be required to provide your ID, and the passport/ID of the person who died and the Medical Certificate of Death.

Death Certificates are in English and Turkish.

There is no obligation to register the death of a UK National that occurs overseas with the UK authorities. Information regarding obtaining a British Death Registration Certificate should you wish to can be found using the following link: www.gov.uk/register-a-death.

A north Cyprus death certificate can usually be used in the UK for most administrative purposes, including probate.

The British High Commission in Nicosia cannot register a death in Cyprus.

Identification & Post mortem examinations (autopsies)

In Cyprus, it is not always necessary for the person who died to be identified by the next of kin. Identification can also be carried out by means of documentation such as a passport or by a friend.

Post mortems, also known as autopsies, are usually carried out within 1-4 working days of the death and are normally performed when death is not by natural causes or the local authorities cannot immediately confirm this.

Post mortems are carried out at a state hospital by forensic doctors appointed by the state, sometimes called pathologists or medical examiners. A doctor in a state hospital may also request a post mortem for a death by natural causes when the cause of death is unclear. Cultural or religious sensitivities may not be taken into account.

During a post mortem, small tissue samples and organs may be removed and retained for testing, including toxicological studies at the discretion of the forensic doctor, without the consent of the next of kin of the person who died. You will not automatically be told if this happens.

This is done in order to better understand the cause of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that might be present. It can be crucial to establish cause of death in cases where criminal or civil legal procedures may eventuate.

In some cases, it may be necessary to have a further post mortem in the UK even though one has been carried out overseas and, when repatriation is to England or Wales, it is probable that the UK Coroner will wish to hold an inquest. Please note if a local burial takes place, then an inquest in the UK will not be possible.

For more information on inquests, see the section on UK coroners and inquests.

After a post mortem, Consular staff are not informed of the results.

Mortuary facilities

Mortuary facilities in Cyprus are of a good standard and are usually attached to local state hospitals.

Mortuary fees are handled separately from any medical fees and need to be paid at the hospital cash desk. There are separate fees for the post mortem, embalming (if repatriating) and for the amount of days in the mortuary.

Culturally, funerals in Cyprus are normally held as quickly as possible after death, usually within 24-48 hours. It is possible for the person who died to stay at the mortuary for longer if necessary, to give next of kin time to travel to Cyprus/make the arrangements etc however this is not encouraged by the hospital for long periods.

Burial, cremation and repatriation

The next of kin of the person who has died will usually need to decide between a local burial and bringing the person home, which is known as repatriation.

Burial

Appointing a funeral director for a local burial

There are no funeral directors in the north of Cyprus who can arrange a local burial for a UK National. Similarly, funeral directors in the Republic of Cyprus cannot arrange a burial in the north.

The British Cemeteries Committee can advise and assist with all elements of a local burial, link here: www.standrewskyrenia.org/the-british-cemeteries-committee/.

Cremation

There are no facilities for cremation in Cyprus. If you wish to bring cremains back to Cyprus to scatter, you will need to ask for permission from the local municipality of the area where you wish to do this.

Repatriation

If you decide on a repatriation and the person who died is covered by insurance, you should immediately contact the insurance company to establish if they are able to cover for the repatriation expenses and make the relevant arrangements. If the insurance company confirms cover you should not appoint your own funeral director or be pressurised by local funeral agencies to do so.

The insurance company will normally have a standing agreement with an international funeral director in the UK to arrange repatriations who in turn will work with a local funeral director in Cyprus.

If the person who died is not covered by insurance, the next of kin will be responsible for all costs. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office cannot assist with these costs.

Note that embalming is a legal requirement for repatriation.

Repatriation can take place from the north of Cyprus via Turkey or via the Republic of Cyprus in the south.

If you decide to repatriate via the Republic of Cyprus, when the person who died is transferred to the south, a second post mortem normally takes place and a new Republic of Cyprus Death Certificate issued, often with a different date of death. This is because the authorities in the south do not recognise any documentation from the north and the date of death is deemed to be the day the person who died is transferred to the Republic of Cyprus.

Appointing a funeral director for repatriation

Unless the person who died had insurance, next of kin must appoint a local funeral director in Cyprus or an international funeral director in the UK to arrange repatriation to the UK.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office produces list of international funeral directors based in the UK and those in Cyprus who can arrange repatriation, links here:

www.gov.uk/government/publications/international-funeral-directors-in-the-uk

www.gov.uk/government/publications/cyprus-north-bereavement-information

In general, Cypriot funeral directors are modern and well equipped, speak English and are used to working with UK Nationals. They are equipped to carry out repatriation procedures and will provide the special caskets required.

Return of personal belongings

Personal belongings found at the time of death are either handed over to the family, if they are present, or taken by the police. If the next of kin chooses repatriation, it is advisable to instruct the local funeral director to collect the belongings from the police on their behalf. If there is an investigation into the death, the clothing and other belongings can be retained as evidence and are not returned until the court case is finished.

Please note, the British High Commission cannot take responsibility for the personal belongings of the person who died.

Steps to take in the UK

There is a step-by-step guide here which includes information on arranging the funeral, telling the government about the death, UK pensions and benefits, and dealing with the estate of the person who died: www.gov.uk/when-someone-dies

British passport cancellation

In order to avoid identity fraud, the passport of the person who died should be cancelled with HM Passport Office (HMPO). To do this, you will need to complete a “D1 form”.

The form, and instructions on where to send it is available here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/what-to-do-with-a-passport-when-the-passport-holder-has-died

If you plan to repatriate the person who died to the UK, you may require their passport to do this. In these circumstances, you should cancel the passport after they have been repatriated.

Child deaths

Police in Cyprus will hold a full investigation into any death, other than those of natural causes; there are no separate procedures for deaths involving children.

Cyprus Social Welfare Services can be involved on request of the family, Consular or hospital staff.

Deaths in road traffic accidents

Police in Cyprus will hold a full investigation into any death and there are no separate procedures for deaths involving road traffic accidents.

Deaths investigated as murder or manslaughter

If the local police have confirmed that they are investigating the death as a murder or manslaughter, a dedicated team within the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office will be available to provide support, including by referring you to a specialised organisations.

You can find more about what they can do here: www.gov.uk/government/publications/helping-british-people-abroad-murder-and-manslaughter.

You should note that if the person who died is repatriated to parts of the UK a coroner or procurator fiscal may decide to hold an inquest. See the section on UK Coroners and inquests below.

If a death is regarded as suspicious, the police in Cyprus will investigate in full. If a perpetrator is identified, they will be charged by the relevant court and normally detained until the trial hearing. The time from arrest to trial can be lengthy and in some complicated cases can take years though the average case will take between 12 and 24 months. A state prosecutor will be appointed to try the case against the perpetrator.

In Cyprus there are no family liaison police officers allocated to families of foreign nationals while the investigation is ongoing. There are occasions when the UK police appoint one although we cannot influence their decision.

The police, courts and state prosecutors are not generally forthcoming with updates and they do not proactively reach out to families. Consular staff can assist in requesting updates though these can be very difficult to obtain.

UK coroners and inquests

If you repatriate the person who died to England and Wales there may be an inquest. The decision on when to hold an inquest is made by HM Coroner. Please note, an inquest will usually only happens in certain situations, for example, when someone has died in suspicious, unnatural, and violent circumstances or whilst in detention.

If you repatriate the person who died to Scotland, the Procurator Fiscal may decide to call for a Fatal Accidents or Injuries Inquiry.

If you repatriate the person who died to Northern Ireland, there will be no coronial inquest or further inquiry.

Please note, Procurators Fiscal and Coroners do not have jurisdiction in another country, nor do they seek to apportion blame to a named individual.

You can find more information on Coroners and the Procurator Fiscal in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office guide on Death Abroad: www.gov.uk/government/publications/coping-with-death-abroad.

Support organisations in the UK

In the UK, there are many organisations that can help bereaved families. Some of these are listed in the guide: www.gov.uk/government/publications/coping-with-death-abroad.