Register a death

Who should register the death?

The death can be registered by:

• Any relative of the deceased;
• any person present at the death;
• the deceased's executor or other legal representative or
• the occupier, at the time of death, of the premises where the death took place.

If none of the above is available or applicable, any other person having knowledge of the particulars to be registered can register the death. The informant must be aged 16 or over.

When and where should the death be registered?

The death must be registered within 8 days. There is no requirement to attend our offices, we are able to complete the registration with you over the telephone, please contact us to start the registration process.

If the death took place in Scotland, it may be registered at any Registration Office in Scotland [PDF].

Documents to have to hand when registering the death

• It is helpful if you can have to hand the Birth Certificate and any Marriage Certificate.

If these are not available and the deceased was born in Scotland, we should be able to obtain the necessary information for you.

If using the Tell Us Once service (a service that notifies relevant central and local government departments of the death) please bring in the following information for the deceased where possible:

• National Insurance Number
• Details of any benefits or services
• Driving Licence or Driving Licence Number
• Passport or Passport Number
• Blue badge

You may also find the following  Bereavement Contact Information (PDF) [419KB]  helpful.

Death Certification Review in Scotland

Please note that from 13 May 2015 a random selection of medical certificates will be selected for review by qualified medical reviewers through the registration system.  These reviews are designed to check the quality and accuracy of certificates and to improve how this information is recorded.  If the death you are registering is selected for review you will not immediately be able to complete the death registration.  The Registrar will explain the review process and timescales, and will contact you when the review is complete. You can still make initial funeral arrangements while the review is underway.  However, the funeral itself cannot take place until the review is completed. A Guide to Death Certification Review in Scotland (PDF) [233KB]

Documents issued by the registrar at the time of registration

The Registrar will issue:

• Form 14 - sent directly to the funeral director of your choice.
• Abbreviated extract of death.

If you require additional extracts of the death entry, eg for insurance or banking purposes, you can obtain copies of the Death Certificate for the statutory fee of £10.00 at time of registration or within one month and £15.00 after one month from the date of registration. 

Legal and Privacy Notices

For information on how we will process your registration information, please read the following Remote registration of Births and Deaths (Word doc) [21KB] .  For information on how we deal with your information, please read the following  Privacy Notice (PDF) [437KB] , produced by the National Records of Scotland.  It is also an offence to provide false information, please read the following  Penalty Notice (PDF) [116KB] .

Financial assistance

You may be entitled to bereavement related benefits.

Perth & Kinross Council has a dedicated Contact the Welfare Rights Team that provides a universal, free, confidential and impartial welfare rights advice and representation service to the residents of Perth & Kinross. The Team has online information which includes information relating to  Benefits and bereavement. 

Depending on your circumstances you may be entitled to a funeral support payment .