Preparing For A Funeral

Step 1: Certifying the Cause of Death

Certificate of Cause of Death (CCOD) is needed to register the death within 24 hours. It is issued either by a doctor in the hospital, or a doctor who visits your home if death occurs at home.

Doctors can issue a CCOD if they know the cause of death, and the death is natural.

If the cause of death cannot be identified or due to unnatural deaths, the doctor will refer the matter to the police. The body will be sent to the Mortuary@HSA and the family will be informed when to go to the mortuary.

You will need to take with you:

• Informant's identification papers, such as NRIC/ passport
• Deceased's identification papers, such as NRIC/ passport/ birth certificate
  
• All of the deceased's medical documents and medicine taken
  

The coroner will review the circumstances of death and determine if an autopsy is required. The next-of-kin will be informed of the coroner's decision and when the body can be claimed.

Step 2: Engaging a Funeral Director

After the CCOD has been obtained, the family may engage a funeral director who will:

1. Collect the body from the home or hospital mortuary
2. Send the body for embalming if required, and
3. Deliver the body to the location of the wake/funeral
   

Search for funeral directors at The Association of Funeral Directors Singapore

Step 3: Registering the Death

(this can be done concurrently with Step 2)

If the body is referred to the Mortuary@HSA, you do not need to register the death separately as death will be registered there. Upon registration, you will be able to collect the Death Certificate.

Step 4: Placing an Obituary (optional)

Obituary is a public notice of death through the local newspapers.

The National Environment Agency website shares the contact details of local newspapers where you can place the obituary.

Step 5: Arranging the Wake and Funeral

Funerals and wakes are intended for family, friends and acquaintances to pay their respects to the deceased and comfort the bereaved. You can choose to have the wake at your own home, or at the funeral parlour. You could also hold the wake at the void deck. Permissions required include:

• Town Council: To get a permit to hold the wake at the void deck
  
• Land Transport Authority: To use part of the road outside your landed property
• National Environment Agency: To extend the funeral wake for more than seven days

Your funeral director will organise the logistics for the wake and/or funeral. This includes getting the necessary approvals, setting up the funeral parlour, arrange for prayers, and more.

Step 6: Preparing for Burial or Cremation

You can book a date and time for cremation or burial at the relevant booking office, through the phone, or online. The National Environment Agency details the relevant offices’ contacts and charges involved.

You will need the following documents:

• NRIC of the applicant and next-of-kin
• Original Death Certificate (which contains the Permit to Bury/Cremate)

Step 7: Storage of Ashes/ Scattering the Ashes at Sea

Every family has its own preferences for the ashes of the deceased. There are normally two options:

For more information on the practical tasks after death, Singapore Hospice Council’s When a Death Occurs – A Guide to Practical Matters is a useful guide.

Alternatively, you may consider inland ash scattering garden as a new option at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery Complex. The garden is opened from 9am to 5pm daily and each family is allowed two hours to complete the ash scattering and rites, with fees incurred. For more information, find out more on NEA’s website.