Guidance

Tajikistan: bereavement information

Published 18 April 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.

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 5000.

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

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.

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.

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.

Next of kin in Tajikistan can often depend on what relationships the individual may have in country, if not part of a tourist excursion or part of a company or organisation. Proof of relationship to the deceased might be required.

Who should be acting as the next of kin, the local law applies the line of succession outlined in the Civil Code, however in practice co-residents of the deceased may have priority:

1) children, spouse, parents; grandchildren by right of representation 2) siblings, half-siblings, grandparents from both sides; nephews and, nieces by right of representation 3) aunts and uncles; cousins by right of representation

Same sex marriages are not recognised under local law, and civil partnerships cannot be registered in Tajikistan. Under local procedures, the police will notify the next of kin of a death. When the next of kin is in the UK or abroad and police are unable to establish the next of kin in country, they will notify the British Embassy or local employer. The local authorities very rarely contact the Embassy directly and if need to they send a Diplomatic Note via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which may take 3 to 7 days.

You might be notified about death directly by someone else, for example a friend, a doctor or police officer, an employer or a colleague.

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.

Information will likely come through the embassy from the police as the chance of confusion with language difficulties may apply.

Access to information concerning a death, post-mortem and police reports, is restricted. The Tajikistan authorities will not provide this information directly to the next of kin, or to third parties including our Embassy. Requests for this information should be made through a legal representative. Some information may also be released to the Embassy upon official request via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. A reply may take a considerable amount of time.

A Death Certificate can be issued to close relatives or those who had custody of the deceased. Proof of relationship or custody will be required, and if not available the registrar can issue a reference letter confirming that the death has been registered instead of a Death Certificate. Other relatives, friends or funeral directors can apply for and collect the Death Certificate by presenting a notarised power of attorney from the next of kin.

All paperwork in Tajikistan is in Tajik or Russian, and officials rarely speak English. You will need assistance of a translator if you do not speak local languages.

Our consular staff can provide lists of English speaking lawyers in Tajikistan.

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.

Appointing a funeral director

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

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

Tajik undertakers are basically equipped and do not have extensive experience of working with foreigners. They will not have English speaking staff or someone speaking only very basic English.

A deceased person in Tajikistan is usually buried within 48 hours of death. Refrigeration and embalming facilities are poor in Tajikistan and deterioration of remains will quickly occur. Time is of the essence when considering repatriation since international standards regarding the repatriation of the remains must be met before death certification is granted.

It is important to remember that if the deceased was travelling with a tour operator, they can be a valuable source of assistance and advice.

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.

All deaths in Tajikistan must be registered. The mortuary or forensic institute where the post mortem took place will issue a medical certificate of death. In most cases, this document will be enough to arrange local burial or repatriation.

A medical certificate of death contains personal details such as full name, gender, passport number, date and place of birth, residential address, date and place of death, name of the person who carried out a post mortem, medical condition and cause of death. A detailed forensic report will not be available at this time and may take 30 days or more to be prepared.

Once you have the medical certificate of death, you can apply for an official Death Certificate. The issuing authority is local ZAGS (Civil Records Registry Office). ZAGS issues certificate in both Tajik and Russian languages within 1-3 days. Documents required for registering death are:

a) Application form. Template will be provided by the ZAGS (Civil Records Registry Office) b) Medical certificate of death issued by hospital, mortuary or forensic institute c) Passport of the deceased (if passport is not available, this needs to be explained in the application form) d) Notarised power of attorney from next of kin if application is submitted by representative or funeral director e) Court Act, if death is established by court decision f) Proof of relationship to the deceased (in some cases this may not be required)

Standard working hours of the Registry office are between 08:00 and 17:00 Staff rarely speak English, so you will need help of Tajik or Russian speaker.

Passport of the deceased may be retained by ZAGS in case of local burial. ZAGS will submit it to the Migration Service by the end of the corresponding month and it will then be returned to the British Embassy via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This process can take a considerable amount of time.

Next of kin can apply for a copy of Death Certificate. A duplicate can be issued within 5 days, but if a referral has to be made to other authorities, the processing time can be extended up to 30 days. The following information will be required: full name and residential address of the deceased, date and place of death registration, reason for requesting a duplicate, ID or passport details of the applicant. If the date of death registration is unknown, this may require an investigation and delay in processing the request.

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[(http://www.gov.uk/register-a-death).

Post mortem examinations (autopsies)

If the circumstances of the death were not unusual, registration of the death is permitted and the body will be released for repatriation or burial. However, if the Prosecutor and Criminal Militia Department under the Ministry of Interior of the Tajikistan Republic (dealing with the criminal cases involving foreign nationals) are not satisfied after a preliminary examination of the facts, an autopsy may be required. Further investigations and interviews with witnesses may also be called for before a decision is made as to cause of death.

In cases of sudden or unexpected death, whether by accident or misadventure, or where a person dies unattended, the Prosecutor or Criminal Militia Department under the Ministry of Interior of the Tajikistan Republic will prepare a report of his findings and the body will be released for burial.

The report will be retained by the court/prosecutor/militia department and may only be released to a legal representative (a local lawyer) of the next of kin. However, if death was caused by a criminal act, the police will be ordered to conduct a full investigation. The Prosecutor General will then decide whether to prosecute. This can delay the release of the body for burial.

Please remember that an inquest will not take place in the UK if a local burial has taken place.

Autopsies are carried out by doctors. During an autopsy, organs can be removed for testing, including toxicological studies, at the discretion of the doctor, without consent of the next of kin. The next of kin are not informed about the removal of any organs.

The sale of organs in Tajikistan is strictly prohibited by law. Organs can be transplanted only with the prior permission of the donor or their close relatives.

The result of post mortem is a Medical certificate of death. The document contains personal details of the deceased, observations of pathologist and cause of death. Next of kin can officially request a detailed post mortem report. The medical certificate of death as well as post mortem report will be in Tajik or Russian.

In some cases, it may be necessary to have a further post mortem (autopsy) in the UK even though one has been carried out overseas.

Mortuary facilities

Mortuary facilities in Tajikistan are of a lower standard than in the UK. The cold storage facilities in regions may not be consistent with standards. Mortuaries are usually attached to the hospitals.

Mortuaries can charge for additional days of storage beyond their standard times.

It is possible but not mandatory to visit the mortuary to identify the deceased.

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.

If the deceased was covered by travel insurance, the insurance company may have a standing agreement with an International funeral director in the UK to arrange the repatriation. If the deceased is not covered by insurance, the next of kin will need to appoint an undertaker in Tajikistan or an International funeral director themselves. A list of International funeral directors based in the UK is attached to this document.

Some local Undertakers in Tajikistan are equipped to carry out repatriation procedures and will provide the special caskets required for the international carriage of human remains. For shipping the body the Undertaker will request the documents such as a local death certificate, burial certificate, copy of ID of accompanying person and a certificate giving permission to transfer the remains to the UK, the Undertaker will arrange this. Our Embassy can provide covering certificates for UK Customs. Local formalities for repatriation normally take around 7 days to complete.

In certain circumstances, repatriation may not always be possible. Our consular staff will try to inform the next of kin as soon as possible if this is the case.

If the next of kin choose to proceed with a local burial, they will need to instruct a local funeral director. There are separate cemeteries for Christians and Muslims and an authorisation must be obtained before burial takes place. You can make specific arrangements depending on your cultural and/or religious beliefs and this will need to be agreed beforehand with the cemetery administration.

Cremation is not available in Tajikistan.

Embalming is mandatory in case of repatriation, and the funeral director can advise on the type of embalming required in each specific case. The body must be transported in an airproof sealed zinc coffin (container). The container must be delivered to the cargo terminal of the airport no later than 4 hours before the flight and the following documentation will need to be prepared beforehand:

Permission from Customs for transportation which is issued based on submission of the following documents:

• death Certificate or Medical certificate of death (or a notarised copy of one of these documents)
• a letter (Act) from a funeral director to confirm there were no foreign objects in the coffin before it was sealed, and a list of items that will accompany the deceased (passport, personal belongings)
• medical certificate from Health Inspection Services that is issued based on a confirmation of embalming and death certificate
• contacts and/or guarantee letter from a receiving company in the UK
• sometimes a letter from the British Embassy is required to confirm there is no objection for repatriation. Please contact us if your funeral director advises that this letter is required

If a family is unable to pay for funeral arrangements, or it is impossible to find and contact the next of kin or other relative/friend, unclaimed remains can be stored in a mortuary for up to 20 days and after that the Communal Services Department of the city administration office will arrange a burial at a local cemetery at their expense.

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.

Return of personal belongings

If the person who died had insurance, check with the insurance company if this covers the return of their personal belongings.

Depending on the type of death involved and who is deemed responsible as next of kin personal items will be managed by the funeral director and returned through him. If there is a partner the items will usually reside with him/her. Obviously if there are suspicious circumstances items may well be withheld until the case is closed.

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

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 about what to do 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 [the form and instructions on where to send the passport is available online] (http://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

There is no difference with the investigation of child deaths as opposed to adults.

Deaths in road traffic accidents

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 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.

When someone dies outside the hospital, police must be informed as soon as possible and the deceased cannot be taken to the mortuary until the police officer issues a protocol. If a death is registered as suspicious, police will investigate in full and will request a forensic examination of a body. The results of forensic examination should be available in 30 days, or longer.

If the death is being investigated as murder or manslaughter a criminal police investigator will lead on the case.

Normally the local authorities will not be forthcoming with their updates and will not proactively reach out to inform the family. Language may be a barrier as well. The family will have to establish a contact with police themselves or appoint a representative to enquire on the progress of the investigation.

If an offender is identified and charged, the pre-trial court may decide to remand the suspect in custody for the duration of investigation, initially for 2 months but can be extended. If a suspect has been detained but then let go they can be investigated again. Once the investigation has concluded the case will be passed to a Public Prosecutor, who will either order a trial, file the case if there are insufficient grounds or evidence to prosecute or extend the period of the investigation.

When the case reaches the judicial stage, it may take several months for it to conclude.

The local murder rate in Tajikistan is relatively low.

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 His 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

Legal Aid

There is no legal aid system in Tajikistan. British nationals without the available means to appoint legal representation can apply for legal aid in most European countries. The Legal Services Commission in London (tel: 020 7759 0000, website www.legalservices.gov.uk) is responsible for legal aid applications overseas.

Compensation

Compensation is only given to Tajik nationals if they are family members of the deceased and if the criteria for the death warrants it.

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

Translation and interpretation

English is not recognised in Tajikistan. Official language is Tajik and Russian language is the interethnic communication language. You will need an interpreter to assist you when applying for documentation.

The local authorities will not provide translation or interpretation in English.

List of translators in Tajikistan.

Additional support

Local support organisations

Local support to bereaved families is very limited. Family members that are citizens of Tajikistan may apply for a compensation for local burial. Depending on the case, police may be able to suggest a social worker or psychologist, but they rarely speak English.

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]( http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coping-with-death-abroad

Annex

List of local funeral directors in Tajikistan