What to do after a British person dies in Greece
This guide gives advice about the death of a British person in Greece, including information on burial, cremation and repatriation.
If you are dealing with the death of a child, multiple deaths, a suspicious death or a case of murder or manslaughter, call +30 210 7272600 to speak to our embassy staff in Greece or the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) on +44 207 008 1500.
Contact the travel insurance company
If the person who died had insurance, contact their insurance company as soon as possible. Insurance providers may help to cover the cost of repatriation. Repatriation is the process of bringing the body home. Insurance providers may also help with medical, legal, interpretation and translation fees.
If the person who died had insurance, the insurance company will appoint a funeral director both locally and in the UK.
The insurance policy may not be valid if the cause of death is alcohol or drug related.
What to do if the person who died didn’t have insurance
If you are not sure whether the person who died had insurance, check with their bank, credit card company or employer.
If the person who died did not have insurance, a relative or a formally appointed representative will usually have to appoint a funeral director and be responsible for all costs. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.
The FCDO cannot help with any costs.
Charities and organisations that offer support
Some UK-based charities and organisations may be able to help you and provide information affected by a death abroad. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based charities and organisations that can help.
You may also be able to get help and information for bereaved children from the Greece-based organisation Merimna.
Register the death and obtain a death certificate
Deaths must be registered in the country where the person died. In Greece, the funeral director will arrange for the registration of the death.
In Greece, you register a death at the registry office of the dimos (local municipality) in the location where the person died. In some circumstances you can register it in the local municipality where the burial or cremation will take place.
Deaths in Greece must usually be registered with the authorities within 30 days.
You do not need to register the death in the UK. The local death certificate can usually be used in the UK for most purposes, including probate.
If you wish, you can register the death with the Overseas Registration Unit. You can buy a UK-style death certificate, known as a Consular Death Registration certificate. A record will be sent to the General Register Office within 12 months.
You need to tell the local authorities if the deceased suffered from an infectious condition, such as hepatitis or HIV, so they can take precautions against infection.
Deal with a local post-mortem
Post-mortems are normally performed when the cause of death is unknown, unnatural, sudden or violent. Court-appointed doctors or pathologists with forensic qualifications carry out post mortems, at the request of the Greek police. A doctor in a state hospital may also request a post-mortem. Cultural or religious sensitivities may not be taken into account. The FCDO cannot stop or interfere with the process.
During a post-mortem, small tissue samples and organs may be removed and retained for testing without the consent of the next of kin. You will not automatically be told if this happens.
The post-mortem report may take several months to complete or, in some cases, more than a year. The report is in Greek and is sent to the court judiciary that has been allocated the case.
If you want a copy of the post-mortem report, you should apply to the Coroner service in Greece or through a lawyer.
In some cases, a further post-mortem in the UK may be required when repatriation is to England or Wales. The UK Coroner will usually hold an inquest.
The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking lawyers in Greece.
Bring the body home
If the person who died had insurance, find out if their insurance provider can help cover the cost of repatriation. Repatriation is the process of bringing the body home. If so, they will make all the necessary arrangements.
If the person who died is not covered by insurance, you will need to appoint an international funeral director yourself.
Find an international funeral director
A relative or a formally appointed representative must appoint a UK-based international funeral director for the person who died to be repatriated to the UK. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.
If the person who died is not covered by insurance, you will need to appoint an international funeral director.
Local funeral directors will work with UK-based international funeral directors to make sure all the necessary requirements are met both locally and in the UK. This includes providing documents such as a local civil registry death certificate, a certificate of embalming and a certificate giving permission to transfer the remains to the UK.
Local arrangements for repatriation usually take 8 to 10 days to complete, but can take longer. Sometimes repatriation may not be possible. Our staff will try to inform a relative or a formally appointed representative as soon as possible if this is the case.
Advice and financial assistance for repatriation
For organisations and charities that may be able to offer assistance with repatriation, see information on LBT Global in Coping with death abroad: specialist support and advice or repatriation charities in Northern Ireland and Wales.
If you want to have a post-mortem in the UK once the body has been repatriated, you can request one from a UK coroner. The coroner will then decide if a post-mortem is needed. If you want the person who died to be cremated, you need to apply for a certificate from the coroner (form ‘Cremation 6’).
Bring the ashes home
If you choose local cremation and wish to take the ashes back to the UK yourself, you can usually do so. Check with your funeral director and airline about specific restrictions or requirements, for example whether you can carry the ashes as hand luggage. When leaving Greece with human ashes you will need to:
- show the death certificate
- show the certificate of cremation
- follow local rules about departing with human ashes
- fill in a standard customs form when you arrive home
You should not have the person cremated abroad if you want a UK coroner to conduct an inquest into their death.
If it is not possible for you to transport the ashes yourself, a funeral director will be able to make the necessary arrangements. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.
Bury or cremate the body locally
To have a local burial or cremation, a relative or a formally appointed representative needs to appoint a local funeral director.
The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking funeral directors in Greece.
The funeral director will be able to explain the local process.
Burials should take place within one month of death. For foreign nationals, the authorities will usually allow more time if needed.
In some Greek cemeteries it is standard procedure that remains are exhumed after 3 years and placed in a charnel house at the cemetery. You should ask for further information on these procedures and the relevant costs from the local undertaker if you are considering a local burial in Greece.
If there is no family to pay for funeral arrangements and all avenues have been explored, the local authorities will arrange a ‘pauper’s funeral’. This is usually a cemetery burial without a ceremony in an individual, unmarked grave.
To scatter ashes in Greece, you do not need permission from local authorities. You can find more information on the Greek crematorium site.
If a local burial or cremation takes place, there will not be a coroner’s inquest carried out in the UK.
Retrieve belongings
Personal belongings found on the person who died at the time of death are given to the police if the family is not present.
If you choose to repatriate, instruct the local funeral director to collect all personal belongings from the police or court and ship them together with the person who died.
If there is an investigation into the death, clothing may be retained as evidence and will not be returned until the court case is finished.
The FCDO cannot help with the cost of returning personal belongings to the family.
Find a translator
You may need a translator to help understand information or get certain documents translated. The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking translators in Greece.
Find a lawyer
You can apply to appoint a lawyer in certain circumstances, such as a suspicious death. The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking lawyers in Greece.
Cancel a passport
To avoid identity fraud, the passport of the person who died should be cancelled with HM Passport Office (HMPO). To do this, you need to complete a D1 form.
If you plan to repatriate the person who died to the UK, you may require their passport to do this. In these circumstances, you should cancel the passport after they have been repatriated.
Check you have done everything you need to do in the UK
Check this step-by-step guide for when someone dies to make sure you have done everything you need to do in the UK after someone has died. You can find information on how to tell the government about the death, UK pensions and benefits and dealing with the estate of the person who died.