Register a death: Information based on your answers

You’ll be contacted by the medical examiner’s office to confirm you can register the death.

You must register the death within 5 days (8 days in Scotland) of being contacted. This includes weekends and bank holidays.

Contact a register office to register the death. You can contact any register office but it will be quicker if you use the one in the area where the person died.

Who should register the death

A relative should register the death.

If a relative cannot register the death, you can do it if you:

were there at the time of death
are an administrator from the hospital (if the person died in hospital)
are in charge of making funeral arrangements

What you need to do

The register office will tell you what you need to do when you contact them.

The register office may also want to see the person’s:

birth certificate
Council Tax bill
driving licence
marriage or civil partnership certificate
NHS medical card
passport
proof of address (such as a utility bill)

Ask the register office what to do if you do not have them.

You’ll need to tell the registrar:

the person’s full name at the time of death
any names previously used, eg maiden name
the person’s date and place of birth
their last address
their occupation
the full name, date of birth and occupation of a surviving or late spouse or civil partner
whether they were getting a State Pension or any other benefits

Documents you’ll get

When you register a death, you’ll get a certificate for burial or cremation (the ‘green form’). This gives you permission for a burial or to apply for a cremation.

You’ll also be able to buy death certificates - these prove the death has been registered. These certificates will be needed for sorting out the person’s affairs. You can:

buy death certificates at the register office when you register the death
order death certificates online