Guidance

When someone dies in New Zealand

The process when a British national dies in New Zealand, including registering the death, funerals and cremations, and bringing the person’s body to the UK.

From:
Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
Published
10 February 2026

Contacting the insurance company

If the person who died had insurance, contact their insurance company as soon as possible. Read the general guidance on what to do when someone dies abroad if you’re not sure if they had insurance.

The insurance company should appoint a funeral director in New Zealand and a funeral director in the UK. They may also cover the cost of bringing the person’s body to the UK (repatriation) and help with any medical, legal, interpretation and translation fees.

Registering the death

The death must be registered at the New Zealand government’s Department of Internal Affairs - births, deaths and marriages section. Your funeral director can normally do this for you.

You will need information and documents about the person who has died, including their:

  • full name
  • gender
  • date of birth (if born outside New Zealand, town and city of birth)
  • date and place of death
  • residential address
  • occupation
  • marital status
  • father’s full name and occupation
  • mother’s full name and occupation

Getting a death certificate

After registering the death, you will normally get a death certificate in one to two weeks. It is free to register a death, but fees do apply to obtain a death certificate. New Zealand death certificates give the cause of death. It’s worth asking for extra copies of the death certificate, as you might need them later.

Post-mortems in New Zealand

A post-mortem is a medical examination of the body. There might be one in New Zealand if the cause of death is unknown, unnatural, sudden or violent. It is possible for the next of kin to object to an autopsy taking place, or to request an external only or partial autopsy. Cultural or religious sensitivities will be taken into account.

During a post-mortem, small tissue samples and organs may be removed and retained for testing, including toxicological studies. These are usually returned before the body is released, although in rare cases they may be kept longer for further investigation, and the family will be informed. This is done to better understand the cause of death and to evaluate any disease or injury that might be present. It can be crucial to establish cause of death in cases where criminal or civil legal procedures may eventuate.

Though it may take months for the full post mortem report to become available, the coroner or police liaison officer may communicate preliminary cause‑of‑death information to you much sooner if they are able to.

Burying or cremating the body in New Zealand

The next of kin of the person who has died will usually need to decide between a local burial, cremation or bringing the person 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

If you choose a local burial in New Zealand, you will need to instruct a local funeral director, so they can make the necessary arrangements with either a private or local authority owned cemetery. You can make specific arrangements depending on your cultural and/or religious beliefs.

If you are thinking of arranging a local cremation, please take advice from a local funeral director. Most crematoriums in New Zealand can host a funeral service, and you can make specific arrangements with your funeral director depending on your cultural and/or religious beliefs. Many local council authorities allow for ashes to be scattered in publicly owned areas, but you should contact the presiding council to comply with any local restrictions.

If you repatriate the person who died, to England and Wales, there may be an inquest. The decision on when to hold an inquest is made by His Majesty’s Coroner. Please note, an inquest will usually only happen in certain situations, for example, when someone has died in suspicious, unnatural, and violent circumstances or whilst in detention. You should not have the person cremated abroad if you want a coroner in England and Wales to conduct an inquest into their death. In Scotland, a further investigation may still be possible .

The law in Northern Ireland is different to that in the rest of the UK, and there is no possibility of a coronial investigation following repatriation, for deaths that occur abroad.

Bringing body to the UK

Ask your funeral director about options for bringing the person’s body to the UK from New Zealand.

If the deceased was covered by travel insurance, the insurance company will normally have a standing agreement with an international funeral directors in the UK to arrange repatriation. If the deceased was not covered by insurance, you will need to appoint funeral directors in New Zealand or international funeral directors in the UK.

The majority of undertakers in New Zealand are equipped to carry out repatriation procedures and will provide full information about the process.

Bringing the ashes to the UK

Ask your UK funeral director about the rules for bringing ashes to the UK. Your funeral director can normally help make all the necessary arrangements for you.

Bringing the ashes to the UK yourself

If the decision has been made to cremate locally and the next of kin wishes to transport the ashes to the UK in person, this is possible. Please see our death abroad guidance. We also advise to check in advance with the airline about specific airline restrictions.

Arranging for the ashes to be taken to the UK

Ask your funeral director for advice if you cannot take the ashes yourself. You may not be able to send them by post or courier. Ashes can be shipped by air freight, although this can be expensive.

Getting the person’s belongings back

Belongings the person had with them when they died are normally given to you or the New Zealand police. If the person who died had insurance, check with the insurance company if this covers the return of their personal belongings.

If you bring the person’s body to the UK, you can ask your local funeral directors to collect all the belongings and transport them together.

If they were a New Zealand resident, you may not be able to take the belongings as they may be part of their estate. Consider legal advice if this happens.

Belongings may be kept as evidence if there is an investigation into the death. They will only be returned when the court case is over.

Finding a New Zealand lawyer

You may need a lawyer to help you understand the New Zealand legal system when someone has died. Please check the List of lawyers in New Zealand. The British High Commission or consulate in New Zealand cannot give you legal advice or pay for legal costs.

Legal Aid in New Zealand is a government‑funded service that helps people who meet their financial and legal criteria to access legal representation for criminal, family, and some civil matters, It does not cover general bereavement tasks such as organising a funeral, repatriation, or administering an estate, but it may be able to help if the death leads to a legal dispute or court process.

Free initial legal advice may be available from some providers on our list of lawyers, subject to their eligibility criteria.

Financial assistance

If someone dies as the result of an accident in New Zealand, the Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) may be able to provide financial assistance with funeral or memorial costs, subject to ACC’s assessment of eligibility. Support can be used for services held either in New Zealand or overseas, and eligible partners, children, or dependants may receive assistance even if they live abroad, including in the UK. A funeral director can help you gather the required information, complete the ACC forms, and guide you through the application process from overseas.

A one-off discretionary grant is available to assist eligible family who have lost a loved one to a homicide through the Victims Assistance Scheme (VAS). In some cases, this grant is also available after a death which results from another criminal act for which charges have been laid by Police.

Work and Income , which is a branch of the New Zealand Ministry of Social Development, may be able to help if the deceased was on New Zealand benefits or a low income.

Victims Assistance Scheme and Work and Income, can be contacted by you directly or by the funeral director.

Additional support

The following organisations in New Zealand may be able to provide information, support or advice to bereaved families:

Telling the UK authorities

Although you do not have to register the death in the UK, when someone dies abroad you still need to tell the UK authorities. Read general guidance on what to do when someone dies abroad to find out what to do.

Contacting the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO)

You can contact the FCDO if you still need advice:

Updates to this page

Published 10 February 2026

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