Guidance

Bereavement information: Uzbekistan

Updated 26 January 2024

1. Introduction

The death of a relative or friend is always distressing. But if it happens abroad the distress can be made worse by practical problems. Consular Directorate in the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and our Embassy in Tashkent are ready to help in any way that they can.

You may be uncertain what to do next or who to contact for advice. This guidance is to help you through the practical arrangements you will need to make. While care has been taken in compiling this guidance, no legal liability for their contents is accepted by the British Embassy in Tashkent or UK government.

This country specific information is designed to help you through some of the practical arrangements you may need to make. You can also read further information produced by the FCDO:

• general information on death abroad, which applies to all countries

• Bereavement guide

You should be aware that procedures in Uzbekistan differ significantly to those in the UK. While we understand your need to make arrangements as quickly as possible, this may not always be possible.

The use of the terms body, body parts, remains, deceased etc. are not meant to offend you in any way. We realise that we are referring to your loved one and we mean no disrespect to the person you have lost.

2. How to contact the FCDO

There is a lot of information below, but you may have questions. You can speak to someone by phone 24/7, any day of the year by contacting the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in London on +44 (0)207 008 5000.

If you are not in the UK, you can find the contact details of the nearest British embassy, high commission or consulate.

The priority of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is to provide assistance to British nationals overseas who need the most help. The level and type of assistance they can offer is tailored to the individual circumstances of each case.

3. Next of kin

The next of kin of the person who died will usually need to make decisions and practical arrangements. The next of kin can sometimes appoint another person to act on their behalf.

If you are not the next of kin, they will need to be informed. If required, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office can help you do this.

There is no legal definition of next of kin in the UK. If there is a disagreement over who is the next of kin, or the person who died did not choose a next of kin, this can cause additional complications.

Next of kin in Uzbekistan can often depend on what relationships the individual may have in country, if not part of a tourist excursion or part of a company or organisation. Proof of relationship to the deceased might be required. Who should be acting as the next of kin, the local law applies the line of succession outlined in the Civil Code. However, in practice co-residents of the deceased may have priority:

• children, spouse, parents; grandchildren by right of representation
• siblings, half-siblings, grandparents from both sides; nephews and, nieces by right of representation
• aunts and uncles; cousins by right of representation

Same sex marriages are not recognised under local law, and civil partnerships cannot be registered in Uzbekistan.

Under local procedures, the police will notify the next of kin of a death. When the next of kin is in the UK or abroad and police are unable to establish the next of kin in country, they will notify the British embassy or local employer. The local authorities very rarely contact the embassy directly and if need to they send a Diplomatic Note via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which may take 3 to 7 days.

The British embassy will do whatever they can to trace the next of kin as soon as possible and would ask UK police to pass on the sad news. You might be notified about death directly by someone else, for example a friend, a doctor or police officer, an employer or a colleague.

3.1 Release of information to next of kin

Access to information concerning a death, other than post-mortem and police reports, is restricted. The Uzbek authorities will not provide this information directly to next of kin, or to third parties including our embassy. Requests for this information should be made through a legal representative. Our consular staff can provide lists of English speaking lawyers in Uzbekistan. The release of any information can take many months, and the documents will be in Russian/Uzbek.

A death certificate can be issued to close relatives or those who had custody of the deceased. Proof of relationship or custody will be required, and if not available the registrar can issue a reference letter confirming that the death has been registered instead of a death certificate. Other relatives, friends or funeral directors can apply for and collect the death certificate by presenting a notarised power of attorney from the next of kin.

4. Insurance

It is very important to check if the person who died had insurance. If they had insurance, contact the insurance company as soon as possible. They may have a list of approved funeral directors to help you make arrangements, or be able to cover some of the costs. If there is no insurance cover, the cost of repatriation or burial will need to be met by the family. Neither the FCDO nor the embassy in Tashkent can pay for these costs.

5. Appointing a funeral director

If you decide to bring the deceased to the UK for the funeral or cremation, you may only need to appoint an international funeral director. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office produces a list of international funeral directors based in the UK.

If next of kin choose to proceed with a local burial, they will need to instruct a local funeral director. Our Embassy in Uzbekistan can provide a list of funeral directors on request, including indications of costs, and can help with practical arrangements.

Uzbek undertakers are ill-equipped and not used to working with foreigners. It is unlikely they will have any English speaking staff.

A deceased person is usually buried within 48 hours of death. Refrigeration and embalming facilities are poor in Uzbekistan and remains will quickly deteriorate. It is important to make decisions as quickly as possible when considering repatriation because international standards regarding the repatriation of remains must be met before certification is granted.

If the deceased was travelling with a tour operator, they can be a valuable source of assistance and advice.

If the deceased was covered by travel insurance, the insurance company may have a standing agreement with an International funeral director in the UK to arrange repatriations. If the deceased is not covered by insurance, next of kin will need to appoint an undertaker in Uzbekistan or an International funeral director themselves. See the list of International funeral directors based in the UK. Tashkent International Medical Clinic has a morgue with capacity for two bodies. The clinic will arrange all necessary formalities in conjunction with the Embassy and next of kin if required.

6. Registering the death

You will need to register the death with the local authorities in the country where the person died. Sometimes a funeral director can do this for you. You will usually need documents about you and the person who has died, which include information such as full name, date of birth and passport number.

The local authorities will need to be told if the person suffered from an infectious condition such as hepatitis or HIV so they can take precautions against infection.

You do not need to register the death with the UK authorities. The local death certificate can usually be used in the UK for most purposes, including probate. If it is not in English, you will need to obtain and pay for an official translation.

All deaths in Uzbekistan must be registered. The mortuary or forensic institute where the post mortem took place will issue a medical certificate of death. In most cases, this document will be enough to arrange local burial or repatriation.

6.1 Obtaining a death certificate

A medical certificate of death contains personal details such as full name, gender, passport number, date and place of birth, residential address, date and place of death, name of the person who carried out a post mortem, medical condition and cause of death. A detailed forensic report will not be available at this time and may take 30 days or more to be prepared.

Once you have the medical certificate of death, you can apply for an official death certificate. The issuing authority is local ZAGS (Civil Records Registry Office). ZAGS issues certificate in both Uzbek and Russian languages within 1 to 3 days. Documents required for registering death are:

• application form. Template will be provided by the ZAGS (Civil Records Registry Office)
• medical certificate of death issued by hospital, mortuary or forensic institute
• passport of the deceased (if passport is not available, this needs to be explained in the application form)
• notarised power of attorney from next of kin if application is submitted by representative or funeral director
• Court Act, if death is established by court decision
• proof of relationship to the deceased (in some cases this may not be required)

Standard working hours of the Registry office are 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday. Staff rarely speak English, so you will need help of Uzbek or Russian speaker.

Passport of the deceased may be retained by ZAGS in case of local burial. ZAGS will submit it to the Migration Service by the end of the corresponding month and it will then be returned to the British Embassy via the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This process can take a considerable amount of time.

Next of kin can apply for a copy of Death Certificate via the Public Services Centre. A duplicate can be issued within 5 days, but if a referral has to be made to other authorities, the processing time can be extended up to 30 days. The following information will be required: full name and residential address of the deceased, date and place of death registration, reason for requesting a duplicate, ID or passport details of the applicant. If the date of death registration is unknown, this may require an investigation and delay in processing the request.

6.2 Consular death registration

There is no legal obligation for the death overseas of a British national to be registered in the UK. However, there are the advantages that a British style death certificate is then available and that a record of the death is afterwards held at the General Register Office in the UK. Read more information about how to register a death in the UK

Alternatively you can contact:

Overseas Registration Unit
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
PO Box 6255
Milton Keynes
MK10 1XX

You can also email deathregistrationenquiries@fcdo.gov.uk with specific enquiries.

A registration cannot, in any case, be made without presenting the death certificate issued by the local authorities.

7. Post mortem examinations (autopsies)

A post mortem (autopsy) will be carried out in most cases and is mandatory when the death is not by natural causes and cause of death is unclear or unknown. When a person dies in a hospital, the cause of death is known and there is a full medical history of the patient, next of kin can request the head doctor of the hospital not to perform a post mortem.

If a person dies outside of hospital, police must be informed immediately to record the death. A police officer will issue a protocol and will arrange for the deceased to be delivered to the mortuary or forensic centre for post mortem. In most cases the post mortem is done within 24 hours, after that the deceased can be released for burial or repatriation. The family will not be charged for the post mortem examination and storage for up to 3 days. After the 3 days grace you can purchase storage for additional days, if required, paid up front. If there is an ongoing investigation of an unnatural death, the investigating authorities may require the body to be stored in a mortuary for a longer period.

The local authorities will need to be told if the person suffered from an infectious disease such as hepatitis or HIV so they can take precautions against infection.

During an autopsy, organs can be removed for testing, including toxicological studies, at the discretion of the doctor and without consent of next of kin. Next of kin are not informed about the removal of any organs.

Authorities will issued a medical certificate of death after carrying out a post mortem. The document contains personal details of the deceased, observations of pathologist and cause of death. Next of kin can officially request a detailed post mortem report. The detailed forensic report should be issued within 30 days, however depending on the capacity of the forensic centre this can take up to two and a half months. The medical certificate of death and post mortem report will be in Uzbek or Russian.

7.1 Organ donation

It is not possible to donate organs in Uzbekistan.

8. Mortuary facilities

Mortuary facilities in Uzbekistan are of a lower standard than in the UK. The cold storage facilities in regions may not be consistent with standards. Mortuaries are usually attached to the hospitals, but there are also independent state mortuary facilities.

Mortuaries can charge for additional days of storage beyond their standard times.

It is possible but not mandatory to visit the mortuary to identify the deceased.

9. Burial and cremation

The next of kin will usually need to decide between a local burial or bringing the deceased home, which is known as repatriation. Your funeral director will usually be able to explain the options available, the costs, and help you make arrangements.

There are no cremation facilities available in Uzbekistan and local scattering of ashes will not be possible.

If you choose a local burial, you will need to make the necessary arrangements with the cemetery, or the funeral director can do this for you. Our embassy in Uzbekistan can provide a list of funeral directors on request, including indications of costs, and can help with practical arrangements.

Tashkent International Medical Clinic has a morgue with capacity for 2 bodies. The clinic will arrange all necessary formalities in conjunction with the embassy and next of kin if required. Local funeral directors provide a wide range of services including ablution (washing the body), dressing, embalming, barber services etc.

10. Repatriation

If you choose to repatriate the deceased, the next of kin should contact the insurance company immediately to arrange repatriation. If there is no insurance, next of kin will need to appoint a local undertaker who can deal with the customs and airlines, prepare the paperwork and obtain the necessary permissions for shipment.

Embalming is mandatory in case of repatriation, and the funeral director can advise on the type of embalming required in each specific case. The body must be transported in an airproof sealed zinc coffin (container). The container must be delivered to the cargo terminal of the airport no later than 4 hours before the flight and the following documentation will need to be prepared beforehand:

• permission from Customs for transportation which is issued based on submission of the following documents
• death certificate or medical certificate of death (or a notarised copy of one of these documents)
• a letter (Act) from a funeral director to confirm there were no foreign objects in the coffin before it was sealed, and a list of items that will accompany the deceased (passport, personal belongings)
• medical certificate from Health Inspection Services that is issued based on a confirmation of embalming and death certificate
• contacts and/or guarantee letter from a receiving company in the UK
• sometimes a letter from the British Embassy is required to confirm there is no objection for repatriation. Please contact us if your funeral director advises that this letter is required

10.1 Alternative arrangements

If a family is unable to pay for funeral arrangements, or it is impossible to find and contact the next of kin or other relative/friend, unclaimed remains can be stored in a mortuary for up to 20 days and after that the Communal Services Department of the city administration office will arrange a burial at a local cemetery at their expense.

Please note if a local burial takes place, then an inquest in the UK will not be possible. For more information on inquests, see the information on UK coroners and inquests.

11. Return of personal belongings

Personal belongings found on the deceased at the time of death are either handed over to the family, if they are present, or taken by the police. Any local undertaker will need a power of attorney from the next of kin to collect the belongings from police. The local police should produce an inventory which will be given to the family.

If the person who died had insurance, check with the insurance company if this covers the return of their personal belongings. Otherwise, the costs for the return of belongings to the family, including shipping overseas, will need to be covered by the next of kin.

If there is an investigation into the death, items that constitute evidence related to the cause of death are not returned until the court case is finished.

The British Embassy cannot take responsibility for the personal belongings of the deceased.

12. British passport cancellation

In order to avoid identity fraud, a deceased person’s passport should be sent to the nearest British Consulate in Uzbekistan or passport office in the UK for cancellation along with the form for passport cancellation. (D1 form). Next of kin can request the passport to be returned. If the passport has been lost or mislaid, relatives need to complete a Lost and Stolen form (LS01) and send it to the nearest British Consulate or the passport office in the UK.

You can contact the Consular section in Tashkent:

British Embassy Tashkent
67 Gulyamov street
Tashkent
Uzbekistan
Telephone +99 878 120 1500

Email: consular.tashkent@fcdo.gov.uk

13. UK coroners and inquests

13.1 England and Wales

When a body is repatriated to England or Wales, a coroner will hold an inquest only if the death was violent or unnatural, or if the death was sudden and the cause unknown. In some countries the cause of death is not given on the death certificate, and coroners do not generally have access to judicial files from other countries. Consequently coroners may order a post-mortem as part of the inquest.

Coroners can request copies of post-mortem and police reports from the Uzbek authorities. However, these will only be provided once any judicial proceedings are completed. In some instances this can take many months.

13.2 Scotland

In Scotland, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) deals with the investigation of all sudden, suspicious, accidental, unexpected and unexplained deaths which occur in Scotland. However, the COPFS does not have the jurisdiction to investigate deaths that occur outside Scotland apart from a few limited circumstances. Broadly, those circumstances include terrorism, cases where the death may been caused in Scotland but the person died outside Scotland and cases where where the death was as a result of murder or culpable homicide caused by another British citizen or subject.

13.3 Northern Ireland

Coroners in Northern Ireland are not obliged to hold an inquest into cause of death. However, next of kin can apply for a judicial review if no inquest is held.

14. Inquests

If the circumstances of the death were not unusual, registration of the death is permitted and the body will be released for repatriation or burial within a few hours. However, if the Procurator General is not satisfied after a preliminary examination of the facts, an autopsy may be required. Further investigations and interviews with witnesses may also be called for before a decision is made as to cause of death.

14.1 Sudden or unexpected death

In cases of sudden or unexpected death, whether by accident or misadventure, or where a person dies unattended, the Procurator General will prepare a report of his findings and the body will be released for burial. The report will be retained by the Court and may only be released to the legal representative (a local lawyer) of the next of kin. However, if death was caused by a criminal act, the police will be ordered to conduct a full investigation. The State Prosecutor will then decide whether to prosecute. This can delay the release of the body for burial.

15. Legal Aid

British nationals without the available means to appoint legal representation can apply for legal aid in most European countries.

The Legal Services Commission in London is responsible for legal aid applications overseas:

Telephone +44(0)20 7759 0000

16. List of international funeral directors

Funeral Director	Address	Tel/Fax	Email
Co-Operative International	221 Upper Richmond Rd., Putney, LONDON SW15 6SQ	Tel: +44 844 600 9088 Fax: +44 20 8788 2525	funeralcare.worldwiderepatriation@co-operative.coop
Kenyon Air Transportation	81 Westbourne Grove LONDON W2 4UL	Tel: +44 20 7258 1130 Fax: +44 20 7243 3125 Fax: 020 7313 6999	katuk@dial.pipex.com
Rowland Brothers International	301-305 Whitehorse Rd, CROYDON CR0 2HR	Tel: +44 20 8684 2324 Fax: +44 20 8684 8000	info@rowlandbrothersinternational.co.uk
National Association of Funeral Directors	618 Warwick Road Solihull B91 1AA	Tel: +44121 711 1343 Fax: +44121 711 1351	info@nafd.org.uk
Phoenix International	13 The Broadway Gunnersbury Lane, LONDON W3 8HR	Tel: +44 20 8993 8767
Avalon International	UK Head Office Brooke Court, WILMSLOW, Cheshire SK9 7ES	Tel: +44 161 486 2020	info@avalonrepatriation.com
Tashkent International Medical Clinic	38 Sarikulskaya St Tashkent	Tel: (+99871) 291 01 42; (+99871) 291 07 26 Fax: (+99871) 291 22 46	tic@tashclinic.org
Dafna funeral home	106 A Botkina St Tashkent	Tel: (+99890) 327 03 53 (+99890) 187 09 33 (+99890) 349 61 91 (+99871) 291 38 54	ritual_O@mail.ru

The listing of the companies above does not represent FCDO endorsement of their services.