Support after murder or manslaughter abroad
Find out about the help you can get in the UK and abroad, including from victim support and the local British embassy or consulate.
If a British person you know has died abroad by murder or manslaughter, you can call your nearest British embassy or consulate or the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) on +44 (0)2 7008 5000 for immediate support and information, 24/7.
How the FCDO can help
After contacting the FCDO they can assign a dedicated consular officer to support you. Depending on your circumstances, you will be able to meet them in person or online.
The consular officer can:
- write to the relevant authorities abroad to note UK interest in the death and request information
- where relevant explain the role of the coroner in England and Wales to the foreign authorities and the information about the death a coroner may need
- provide basic information about local processes
- regularly seek updates on the foreign investigation or trial process on your behalf, particularly if you do not wish to attend, or cannot attend in person
- support you to make arrangements to visit the place where your friend or relative died, meet the police or other officials, or attend any court proceedings abroad. If you need financial assistance, they can suggest sources of help
- refer you to victim support
The FCDO cannot:
- pay for lawyers, interpreters or any other costs like travelling to attend court hearings or meetings abroad
- provide translation services
- offer legal advice, start legal proceedings or investigate a crime
- interfere with the local justice system
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Murder Manslaughter and Infanticide abroad sets out how the FCDO, HM Coroners and police forces work together to support families in England and Wales.
When someone dies abroad
You can find guidance by country on what to do when someone dies abroad, including how to return the person’s body to the UK and appointing a funeral director. You may not be able to arrange a funeral until police examinations and other proceedings are finished. These can take time to complete.
Police investigations and trials abroad
When a crime is committed abroad, any investigation will follow the local laws, practices and standards. These could be very different to those in the UK. In most cases, the UK police and authorities, including the FCDO, have no jurisdiction over the legal process in another country. This means that they cannot interfere in investigations or legal proceedings that take place abroad.
It is not possible to know how long an investigation or legal proceedings abroad may take. It could be months or even years. You should consider appointing a local lawyer.
If you think there is evidence of suspicious circumstances, but the death is not being investigated as a murder or manslaughter, the FCDO can advise you on how to raise your concerns with the relevant authorities abroad. You should also consider seeking independent legal advice.
Police Family Liaison Officers
If your local UK police force appoints a police Family Liaison Officer, the FCDO will work closely with them to support you. The FCDO can provide them with information it receives from the authorities overseas about the death, but if you prefer, the FCDO can provide these updates directly to you instead.
Victim support in England, Wales and Scotland
The FCDO work with:
- Victim Support’s National Homicide Service, for eligible consenting families in England and Wales
- Victim Support Scotland’s Support for Families Bereaved by Crime service, for eligible consenting families in Scotland
Both can help you or your family with additional emotional or practical support if you’ve been bereaved through murder or manslaughter abroad.
You can be assigned a trauma trained caseworker who can collaborate with you to create a support plan based on a comprehensive assessment of your specific needs.
Support could include:
- emotional support
- assessments and referrals to bereavement and trauma therapists
- help with issues like accommodation, debt, employment, benefit claims or education, arising because of the bereavement
- help finding a lawyer and translation services
- support understanding the legal proceedings
- help returning the person’s body home
- financial support on a case-by-case basis, for example a financial contribution towards returning the person’s body or travel costs if you have to attend legal proceedings abroad
- peer support where you can speak to other people who have been through similar experiences
If you do not want support now, but you change your mind later, it will still be available to you.
Victim support in Northern Ireland
If you live in Northern Ireland you can seek support from Victim Support Northern Ireland.
Feedback
The FCDO welcomes your views on the support it provides, to help identify what it does well and what it could do better. Contact the FCDO using the feedback contact form.
Disclaimer
You can read the disclaimer relating to this guidance.
Updates to this page
Last updated 11 October 2023 + show all updates
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Rewritten and restructured to better explain support FCDO and other organisations can provide
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First published.