Dying abroad, and bringing someone home

Deaths abroad are more common than people expect — holidays, work, and the substantial numbers of people living outside their country of origin.

The process is genuinely difficult, and it is one of the situations where knowing what to expect makes a real difference.

The immediate steps

Contact the local authorities and, if appropriate, emergency services.

Contact your country's consulate or embassy. Consular services cannot pay for anything or make arrangements, and they can provide information, lists of local funeral directors and translators, and help with registering the death and with documentation.

Their assistance is genuinely useful and their limits are real, and families are frequently disappointed on both counts.

Contact the travel insurer immediately, before making any arrangements. Insurers generally require notification before costs are incurred and may not reimburse arrangements made independently.

Contact a tour operator if travelling on a package, since they frequently have processes.

Registration and documentation

The death must be registered according to local law in the country where it occurred.

You will receive a local death certificate, generally in the local language, and it will typically need translation and sometimes legalisation or apostille certification to be accepted elsewhere.

Many countries allow the death to be additionally registered with the consulate or with the home country's registry, which produces a document more readily accepted at home.

Certified copies, in quantity, are needed for the same reasons as at home, and obtaining them later from another country is considerably harder.

Post-mortem examinations

Local law determines whether an examination is required. In some countries it is routine for a death of a foreign national.

This can cause substantial delay, sometimes weeks, and families frequently find the process opaque and the communication poor.

In some circumstances a further examination may be required on return to the home country, which is distressing for families who believed the process was complete.

The options

Local burial or cremation. The least expensive by a large margin.

Worth genuinely considering rather than dismissing. Some families choose it, particularly where the person had a connection to the country. Others find it unbearable.

Repatriation of the body. Expensive — costs commonly run into thousands and vary enormously by distance and destination.

Requirements typically include embalming, a specific type of sealed coffin, documentation certifying the cause of death and that the body poses no public health risk, and air freight arrangements.

This takes time, commonly one to several weeks, and longer where an investigation is involved.

Local cremation and repatriation of ashes. Substantially cheaper and simpler, though documentation is still required and some countries restrict cremation or require specific permissions.

Note that cremation may prevent any further examination, which matters if the cause of death is disputed or if there may be a claim.

Insurance, and what it frequently does not cover

The most important practical point.

Travel insurance commonly includes repatriation, and policies have limits, exclusions and conditions. Check the limit against realistic costs.

Common exclusions: pre-existing conditions not declared, alcohol or drug-related incidents, dangerous activities, travel against medical advice, and travel to regions subject to official advisories.

Age limits and trip duration limits apply to many policies.

Residents abroad are frequently not covered at all. Travel insurance covers trips, not residence. Expatriates commonly have no repatriation cover and discover this at the worst moment.

Anyone living abroad should check whether repatriation is covered by their health insurance, employer, or a separate policy, and should tell their family what the position is.

Some employers provide repatriation cover for staff posted overseas.

Some banks and credit cards include travel cover with conditions.

Costs and who pays

Where there is no insurance, the family pays, and the sums are substantial.

Consular services will not pay repatriation costs in most cases, and this surprises people consistently.

Some countries offer limited assistance in exceptional circumstances, and charitable funds exist in some cases.

Local burial or cremation remains the option where funds are not available, and there is no shame in it.

Practical points for families

Use a repatriation specialist rather than a general funeral director. Firms specialising in this handle the documentation and the logistics, and the difference in competence is substantial.

The insurer will usually appoint one.

Expect the belongings to be an issue. Personal effects may be held by authorities and released separately, sometimes slowly.

Expect language and communication difficulties, and use a translator where necessary.

Keep every document and receipt.

Be prepared for the process to take longer than you are told.

What to arrange in advance

If you travel frequently, live abroad, or have family who do:

Check whether repatriation is covered and to what limit.

Tell your family what your preference would be. Many people, told the cost and the delay, say they would rather be cremated locally with ashes brought home. Saying so in advance removes an agonising decision.

Keep a note of insurance details somewhere accessible to family, not only in your own luggage.

Register with your consulate if living abroad long term, where such a service exists.

Requirements for registration, repatriation and documentation differ by country. Contact your consulate or embassy, and notify any insurer before incurring costs.