Guidance

Mozambique: bereavement information

Updated 21 June 2022

1. Disclaimer

This information is not meant to be definitive, nor is it to be taken as a substitute for independent legal advice. Neither Her 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.

2. 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.

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.

3. 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 and Development Office in London on 0207 008 1500.

If you are not in the UK, you can find the contact details of the nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate online.

The priority of the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office is to provide assistance to British 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.

4. 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 and Development Office can help you do this.

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.

In Mozambique, the hierarchy of next of kin is normally:

1. Partner, spouse in marriage or union
2. Children over 18 years of age
3. Parents
4. Siblings
5. Close relatives
6. The State

Divorced or separated spouses are not considered to be next of kin. If there is a dispute over next of kin, the local courts can decide who the next of kin should be.

5.  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 officers 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.

In Mozambique, access to information concerning a death is restricted until a coroner has reviewed the evidence such as post-mortem and police reports. The Mozambican authorities will usually not provide information directly to next of kin, or to third parties, including our consulates, until after the conclusion of the preliminary investigation. The release of any information can take several weeks and in some more complicated instances, years.

6. Insurance

It is very important to check if the person who died had insurance. If they had insurance, contact the insurance company as soon as possible. They may have a list of approved funeral directors to help you make arrangements, or be able to cover some of the costs.

If the person who died did not have insurance, the next of kin will usually have to appoint a funeral director and will usually be responsible for all costs. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office cannot help with these costs.

7.  Appointing a funeral director

If you decide to bring your deceased to the UK, you may only need to appoint an international funeral director. The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office produces a list of international funeral directors based in the UK.

If you decide to hold a funeral or cremation in Mozambique, you can find a list of funeral directors in Mozambique.

8. Registering the death and obtaining a death certificate

You will need to register the death with the local authorities in the country where the person died. Sometimes a funeral director can do this for you. You will usually need documents about you and the person who has died, which include information such as full name, date of birth and passport number.

The local authorities will need to be told if the person suffered from an infectious condition such as hepatitis or HIV so they can take precautions against infection.

You do not need to register the death with the UK authorities. The local death certificate can usually be used in the UK for most purposes, including probate. If it is not in English, you will need to obtain and pay for an official translation.

Deaths are registered at the local Civil Registry Office, part of the Ministry of Justice in Mozambique. It is a legal obligation to register a death. An official Mozambican death certificate is typically released within 48 hours after its request.

If the death occurs in a hospital, the hospital will produce a medical death certificate. This should be taken to the Civil Registry Office, who will issue the official death certificate. A local funeral director can do this on your behalf.

If the death is reported to local authorities, the local authorities produce a police letter or a community leaders’ letter which can be submitted to the Civil Registry Office, instead of a medical death certificate.

As Mozambique is a member of the Commonwealth, the death certificate will be issued in Portuguese. If you need a translated copy, please see our list of translators/interpreters.

The death certificate typically includes information regarding the deceased (name, nationality, age, sex, marital status) and information regarding the death of the deceased (date of death, time of death, cause of death, witness).

9. Consular death registration

You do not have to register the death of a British national that occurs overseas with the UK authorities. You can sometimes apply for a consular death registration. This is not mandatory and cannot be used instead of a death certificate from the country where the person died. It is only available in some countries. If you wish to do this, you can find more information on registering a death and apply online.

10. Post-mortem examinations (autopsies)

Mozambican law requires that every foreigner that dies in Mozambican territory must undergo an autopsy. A local coroner conducts the autopsy and will then issue a death report explaining the cause of death. This service is charged 25,000.00 Meticais – equivalent to approximately £300 in April 2022. For the autopsy report an additional fee of 1,000.00 Meticais is charged – equivalent to approximately £12 in April 2022. The next of kin is responsible for the payment of this service, which can be paid through your funeral director.

During an autopsy, organs can be removed for testing, including toxicological studies, at the discretion of the doctor, without consent of next of kin. This is done in order to better understand the cause of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that might be present. Organs are not retained. However, tissue, such as blood and hair, may be retained if further investigation is crucial to establish cause of death in cases where criminal or civil legal procedures may eventuate. We understand that this can be upsetting and we will do everything that we can to keep you informed and prepare you.

Even though an autopsy will be carried in Mozambique, once the deceased is repatriated to the UK, a further autopsy is required when repatriation is to England or Wales and the Coroner will hold an inquest.

11. Mortuary facilities

The body of the person who died is held at a local hospital morgue. Bodies are transported to the closest morgue if a local morgue is not available.

In Maputo province, the combined morgues have the refrigeration capacity of approximately 300 bodies, with Maputo city holding a capacity of 144 bodies. Refrigeration is also available in all provincial capitals. The morgue is often over capacity.

Standards vary widely and are not up to the standard you would expect in the UK, particularly in remote areas. This can mean that the condition of the person who died may deteriorate more quickly than they would in the UK, and viewing the body may be more distressing as a result.

12.  Burial, cremation, repatriation

The next of kin of the person who has died will usually need to decide between a local burial, cremation or bringing the person home, which is known as repatriation. Your funeral director will usually be able to explain the options available, the costs, and help you make arrangements.

Burial in Mozambique can be arranged through the local undertakers. Cemeteries in Mozambique can be overcrowded and multiple occupancy of plots does occur. We advise that if the next of kin wish to have the deceased buried that they should consider having the body repatriated and the funeral take place in the UK.

Cremation is unusual in Mozambique and facilities are not widespread. In Maputo, the crematorium is basic but enclosed and run by the Hindu community, although it is open to all faiths. A request must be made to the local Civil Registry to cremate the body. The deceased would be placed on a pyre and oil is used. The ashes should be collected the following day by the next of kin, or a formally appointed representative.

If the next of kin chooses to have a local cremation and wishes to take the ashes back to the UK themselves, they can do so. The local funeral director will be able to arrange the necessary paperwork for the return of the ashes to the UK.

Please note if a local burial or cremation takes place, then an inquest in the UK will not be possible. For more information on inquests, see the information on UK coroners and inquests below.

If the deceased was covered by travel insurance, the insurance company will normally have a standing agreement with an international funeral director in Britain to arrange repatriations. If the deceased is not covered by insurance, the next of kin will need to appoint an international undertaker in the UK.

The paperwork needed for repatriation can normally be arranged by a local undertaker. The following items are needed:

1. Death certificate issued by the Civil Registry Office (see above).
2. Embalming certificate, prepared by the funeral home.
3. Certificate of transfer (if the person died outside Maputo, and their body needs to be moved within the country).
4. Repatriation permit is issued by the local Public Health Department. Funeral directors can normally arrange to have this issued and notarised on your behalf.

Local authorities will ask for a copy of the passport or ID card of the deceased for the purposes of the death certificate and confirm the affiliation. The address of the funeral director in the UK will also need to be provided to the local undertaker.

Locally issued certificates are in Portuguese, therefore translations are necessary if you wish to repatriate the body.

Depending on flight availability and possible formalities with the local authority, repatriations can normally take 8 to 10 days to complete. Local funeral directors are able to provide the special caskets necessary for international transportation.

We acknowledge that the next of kin may not always live in the UK. Repatriations can be organised to most countries in the world.

13. Return of personal belongings

Personal belongings found on the deceased 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 and to ship personal belongings together with the body. If there is an investigation into the death, the deceased’s clothing can be retained as evidence and is not returned until the court case is finished.

The British High Commission cannot take responsibility for repatriating the deceased’s personal possessions.

14. Steps to take in the UK

You can find more information on the steps to take in the UK online. This 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. There is a step-by-step guide on gov.uk.

15. British passport cancellation

In order to avoid identity fraud, the passport of the person who died should be cancelled with Her Majesty’s 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 online.

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.

16. Child deaths

The National Service of Criminal Investigation (Serviço Nacional de Investigação Criminal - SERNIC) investigates deaths in Mozambique (child or adult).

17. Deaths in road traffic accidents

If the circumstances of the death were not unusual, registration of the death is permitted and the body will be released for repatriation or cremation within a few days. However, if the police are not satisfied after a preliminary examination of the facts, an autopsy may be required.

In cases of sudden or unexpected death whether by accident, misadventure or where a person dies unattended, the police will prepare an initial report of their findings. The release of the information to next of kin will depend on SERNIC and their investigation timeline.

18. 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 and Commonwealth Office will be available to provide support, including by referring you to a specialised organisation. You can find more about how the FCDO can help with murder and manslaughter abroad.

You should note that if the deceased 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.

The National Service of Criminal Investigation (SERNIC) leads the investigation into murder and manslaughter cases.

19. UK coroners and inquests

If you repatriate the deceased to England and Wales, there may be an inquest. The decision on when to hold an inquest is made by Her Majesty’s Coroner. Please note, an inquest will usually only happen in certain situations, for example, when someone has died in suspicious, unnatural, and violent circumstances or whilst in detention. If the person who died is cremated and only their ashes are brought home, there will not be an inquest.

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 FCDO guide on death abroad.

20. Legal Aid

Legal Aid is not available for legal representation in Mozambique. However, under certain circumstances, such as a suspicious death, you may wish to engage the services of a local lawyer to represent your interests should a trial be necessary. Should you wish to have detailed feedback from court proceedings, you may wish to engage a lawyer before the case passes to the public prosecutor. Please see our list of lawyers available online.

21. Compensation

According to Mozambican social services, there is no Government compensation available for death of foreigners abroad without a proper compensation claim in the tribunal. You are advised to reach out to a local lawyer for more information regarding this matter. Please consult our list of lawyers available at our official website, it was prepared for the convenience of British Nationals who require legal advice in Mozambique.

You can find information on UK compensation for victims of terrorism overseas.

22. Additional support

22.1 Local support organisations

We were not able to find charities that provide support to bereaved people in Mozambique. However, support is often available from local religious entities.

22.2 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 coping with death abroad.

We also have information for victims of crime abroad, which you may find helpful.