Please telephone beforehand to make an appointment to register the death. An appointment can normally be made as little as 24 hours in advance. It would normally be a relative of the deceased who attends to register the death unless this presents difficulties. In this case someone present at the death, arranging the funeral or where the death took place in an institution the occupier may register instead.
In order to register the death you must first of all make arrangements to collect the medical certificate issued by the doctor in attendance. Where the death has been referred to the Coroner the registrar must be in receipt of the Coroner's notification before the death can be registered. Where the Coroner authorises a post mortem he will issue a form disclosing the cause of death in order for the death registration to take place. In these circumstances a doctor will not issue a medical certificate.
The death needs to be registered in the registration district where the event occurred. Alternatively you can attend at any other Register Office to attest a declaration. The information will be recorded and forwarded to the correct office who will then register the death on receipt of the declaration and forward any registration documents to the address provided in the post. This may mean that you need to delay the funeral until the relevant form is received by the funeral director.
There is no charge for a death to be registered. After the registration is completed the registrar will provide a form allowing the funeral to take place and this should be delivered to the funeral director. In some cases a form authorising the funeral may have already been issued by the Coroner where he has been involved. This will replace the form normally issued by the registrar.
A form for Social Security purposes will also be issued at the time of registration. For all other purposes death certificates may be purchased either at the time of the registration or at any time in the future from the office where the death took place in person or by post on receipt of the relevant details and fees.
For more details concerning the registration of a death please contact the Register Office. You can download a copy of the "Registering a Death" leaflet (PDF 953Kb). Leaflets are also available explaining the procedure at local libraries, hospitals, doctor's surgeries and funeral directors. See also our Fact Sheet on Registering a Death (PDF 56Kb).
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