Apply to bury or cremate in Scotland

If someone has died abroad and you want to bury or cremate them in Scotland, you must apply to Healthcare Improvement Scotland for permission.

Health Care Improvement Scotland can be contacted by:

• emailing his.dcrs@nhs.scot 
• phoning 0300 123 1898 between 08:30 and 17:30, Monday to Friday

The funeral director or funeral arranger must then send:

• a completed death abroad application form
• a post-mortem examination application (if applicable)
• a completed death abroad declaration

You will need to provide electronic copies of:

• the death certificate (or equivalent) and/or certificate of registration of death (issued by the country where the person has died)
• the passport of the deceased (or equivalent photographic identification)
• a completed Form A1 (required for cremations only)
• any other relevant paperwork

More information can be found on the Healthcare Improvement Scotland website.

If a foreign national dies in Scotland, the arrangements for burial or cremation in Scotland are the same as for a Scottish citizen.

Visit the Scottish Government website to find out what to do after a death in Scotland.

After you apply

A medical reviewer will check your application and (if successful) will send you:

• a certificate declaring the documentation is in order
• a certificate authorising a burial or cremation

The process takes 5 working days from when they get your application.

If the medical reviewer needs more information, they'll try to get missing documents or information as soon as possible. If they're unable to conclude it's safe to cremate, only a burial will be possible.

Bringing ashes back to Scotland

You do not need a permit to bring ashes into the UK.

You can usually carry ashes onto a plane or put them in the hold as part of your luggage.

When you take the ashes to the airport you should:

• tell the airline in advance so they can give you advice
• take the cremation certificate with you to answer any questions you are asked

Scattering ashes

You can scatter ashes anywhere in Scotland if you have the permission of the landowner.

Interring ashes

If you want to inter ashes in a Scottish cemetery you must contact the burial or cremation authority for the cemetery to arrange this.

Suspicious deaths abroad

If a person dies abroad in suspicious circumstances, Healthcare Improvement Scotland may report the death to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. Their Scottish Fatalities Investigation Unit (SFIU) will investigate the death, whether or not there is an open or closed investigation in the country where the death happened. When a death abroad is reported to the SFIU, they will consider if:

• the death was sudden, suspicious or unexplained
• the circumstances of the death have been sufficiently established (meaning enough of the details are proven to be true)
• the circumstances would be sufficiently established in an inquiry
• it would be in the public interest to hold an inquiry

If someone dies abroad who has emigrated and lived permanently in another country, the SFIU will not investigate.