Scotland - Register a Death

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Procedure

Any death which happens in Scotland must be registered within 8 days of the death.

Apply In-Person:

1. To Register a Death, the applicant has to approach the nearby Local Register Office link

   Note: The applicant has to enter their Postcode to find nearby offices.

2. An application form will be provided to the applicant by the concerned officer.
3. The applicant has to fill in all the necessary details in the application form. (Incomplete applications are not accepted)
4. Make sure that the applicant has attached all the necessary documents that are mentioned in the “Required Documents” section of this page.
5. The applicant has to attach photocopies of the required documents along with the application form while submitting it.
6. Submit all the documents with the completed form to the concerned officer.
7. The fee for death registration is free of cost. But the applicant does need to pay for the death certificate. This costs £11 for each copy.
8. After receiving the application, the concerned authority will check the submitted application and document set. If all are in place, the application will be accepted.
9. All applications are processed within a reasonable time, having regard to the particular circumstances of each application, including the completeness of information and documents submitted to the authority by the applicant.
10. The authority may seek additional information from an applicant if this is necessary to assess the application. The authority does not need to deal further with an application until the applicant has provided this additional information.
11. It takes around half an hour to complete a death registration in the Scotland, but the applicant may need to wait a couple of days for an appointment. At the end of his/her appointment, he/she will be able to take the death certificate away with the applicant, along with any other official copies he/she has ordered.

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Required Documents

• Completed application form
• Medical certificate
• Birth certificate
• Marriage or civil partnership certificate
• NHS medical card
• Proof of address, such as a bank statement or utility bill
• Documents relating to a government pension or allowances

Office Locations & Contacts

REGISTER OFFICE – SCOTLAND
National Records of Scotland
New Register House
3 West Register Street
Edinburgh
EH1 3YT
Email - [email protected]
0131 202 0451
List of Local Register Office link

Eligibility

The applicant can register a death if he/she:

• Is related to someone who has died
• Was there when the person died
• Is an executor or solicitor of the person who has died
• Lived with the person who died, if they died at home

Fees

• The fee for death registration is free of cost. But the applicant does need to pay for the death certificate. This costs £11 for each copy.

Validity

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Documents to Use

Please attach documents that can be used by people. e.g. links

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

• The entire process can be completed within 2 or 3 days or as per the timeline advised by the respective department authority.

Related Videos

Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications.
Attach videos using the following tag <&video type='website'>video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites.
Please remove the '&' inside the tags during implementation.
Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver,
sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube
width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed.
e.g In the following url 'http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M' Video ID is 'Y0US7oR_t3M'.

Instructions

• Applicants must complete the application form before submitting it. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
• Applicants must provide genuine information while applying for this procedure.

Required Information

• Name of the deceased
• Date of birth
• Place of birth
• Age
• Gender
• Address
• Their occupation or last occupation if retired
• The full name of their spouse or civil partner
• Details of a state pension or other state benefit they were receiving

Need for the Document

• Registering a death in Scotland is a legal requirement that involves providing details of the deceased person to the local register office. The registration process involves completing a form and providing information about the deceased person's identity, such as their full name, date of birth, occupation, and place of death.

Information which might help

• For more information link

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

Place some external links which might help.

Others

Once the applicant has registered the death and obtained a death certificate, there are three key things he/she needs to do:

• Arrange the funeral
• Notify people and organisations about the death
• Apply for probate