Death Registration

As Funeral Directors we can assist you in the registration of the death of a loved one. However, should you wish to do this yourself the following information should assist you.

To register a death, you must bring a Death Notification Form stating the cause of death to any Registrar. This can be obtained from the doctor who attended the deceased during his/her last illness. Part 2 of the Death Notification Form must be completed and signed in the presence of the Registrar.

A doctor must be satisfied about the cause of death before they can certify it. If they did not attend to the deceased at least 28 days before the death occurred, or if they are not satisfied about the cause of death, they must inform a Coroner who will decide if a postmortem is necessary.

If the deceased died as the result of an accident, or in violent or unexplained circumstances the coroner must be informed. Where a post mortem is required this may delay the registration of a death. The death is automatically registered where an inquest or post-mortem is held at the request of the Coroner.

The Coroner issues a certificate to the Registrar containing all the details to be registered. Deaths should be registered as soon as possible and no later than 3 months from the date of the death. You will require the written permission of the Registrar General to register any death that was not registered within one year.

You can approach any Registrar to get a copy of a Death Certificate. If you are registering the death, you can get copies of the Death Certificate at the same time. There is a reduced fee for those who need the Death Certificate for social welfare purposes. You do not necessarily have to wait for the Death Certificate before claiming social welfare benefits, as a copy of the Death Notice from the newspapers will be accepted if there is a delay in getting the certificate.