How to Register a Death in England and Wales¶

Registration is the gate. Almost nothing else can happen until it's done. The funeral director needs the green form before they can proceed. Banks won't release money. Pension providers won't pay out. The Probate Registry won't accept an application. Tell Us Once won't notify a single department.

This guide is about what registration actually involves in England and Wales today: the medical examiner step that comes first, the 5-day deadline (which doesn't start when you think it does), who can register, what to bring, what happens at the appointment itself, and what you carry home with you.

If you can only do one thing today: Once the doctor has confirmed the death, wait for the medical examiner's office to contact you. They will tell you when registration can begin. Then ring the local Register Office for the area where the death occurred and book the appointment. Do not try to register before the medical examiner has signed off; the registrar cannot proceed without it. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

The medical examiner step comes first¶

Since September 2024, every non-coronial death in England and Wales is reviewed by an independent medical examiner before registration. The attending doctor still proposes the cause of death; the medical examiner, a senior NHS doctor unconnected to the patient's care, reviews it and confirms the paperwork is in order. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

The medical examiner's office will contact you. They will explain the cause of death, answer questions about the care given before the death, and tell you when registration can proceed. Speaking with them is voluntary; you are entitled to decline and proceed straight to the registrar once the paperwork has been released. The conversation usually happens by phone and rarely takes more than ten or fifteen minutes. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

This is the part that surprises families. People expect to register on day one or day two, and then find there's a wait of two to four working days while the medical examiner does their review. That is normal. The 5-day deadline is set so that this delay fits inside it; it does not start running from the date of death.

The deadline and how it actually counts¶

The death must be registered within 5 days of the medical examiner releasing the paperwork. The 5 days include weekends and bank holidays. 8 days in Scotland (a separate jurisdiction with a different process). [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

If 5 days is not feasible (you are unwell, there are no appointments, the medical examiner takes longer than expected), call the register office and explain. The deadline can be extended; the system is designed to accommodate this. There is no penalty for a registration that runs over by a day or two with the registrar's agreement. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

If the death has been reported to a coroner, the registration deadline does not apply. The coroner's process replaces the medical examiner review and proceeds on its own timeline. Registration follows the coroner's release of paperwork, which can take weeks or months for a full inquest. The interim certificate the coroner issues covers most administrative needs while you wait.

Who can register the death¶

The law sets a priority order, but in practice the registrar will accept whoever in the family is best placed to attend: [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

A relative present at the death.
A relative in attendance during the last illness.
A relative living in the district where the death occurred.
Anyone else present at the death.
The occupier of the building where the death occurred (a care home manager, for example).
The person arranging the funeral. The funeral director themselves cannot act as informant.

Only one person needs to attend. The person who attends is the informant and their name and address will appear on every certified copy of the death certificate that's issued afterwards. That detail is worth thinking about deliberately rather than letting it default; the address can't be redacted later.

Where to register¶

You register at the Register Office for the district where the death occurred, not where the person lived. If they died in hospital in a different town, you register in the hospital's town. [source: gov-uk/find-a-register-office-2026-04-29.html]

Find the right Register Office at gov.uk/register-offices. Most run an appointment system; a few accept walk-ins, but you should not assume. Phone first. [source: gov-uk/find-a-register-office-2026-04-29.html]

If you cannot reasonably travel to the right office (you don't drive, the hospital is far from where you live, the family is scattered), you can attend any Register Office in England or Wales and ask them to take a "declaration of registration." They will record the details and forward the paperwork to the correct district, which then completes the registration and issues the certificates by post. This adds several working days to the process; if speed matters, travel to the right office.

What to bring¶

The only essential document is the medical paperwork the medical examiner has released. In most areas this is sent directly from the medical examiner's office to the registrar; you do not need to carry it yourself. Confirm with the registrar when booking the appointment. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

Bring whatever else you can find of the deceased's personal documents: a passport, a driving licence, a birth certificate, a marriage or civil partnership certificate, a council tax bill or utility bill, an NHS number or medical card. None of these are required, but each one removes a question the registrar would otherwise have to ask you to answer from memory under stress. Bringing two or three of them turns a 30-minute appointment into a 20-minute appointment.

Bring a debit or credit card. The registrar will ask how many copies of the death certificate you want; they cost £12.50 each and most families need at least 5 to 10. Cash is accepted in most offices; card is universal. [source: gov-uk/order-death-certificate-2026-04-29.html]

What happens at the appointment¶

Allow about 30 minutes. The registrar will ask you for: [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

The deceased's full name, including any maiden name.
Their date and place of birth.
Their last permanent address.
Their occupation. If they were married, their spouse's occupation as well.
The date and place of death.
Whether they were receiving a state pension or any benefits.
Their NHS number (if you have it).

The registrar enters everything into the official register. You will be asked to read the entry on screen and confirm it before they sign it. Mistakes are corrected easily at this point. After registration they cannot be amended without a separate written application, so it's worth taking the extra minute to read carefully.

The registrar then issues three things: [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

The Certificate for Burial or Cremation (the "green form"). Hand this to your funeral director. The funeral cannot proceed without it.
A unique reference number for the Tell Us Once service. This lets you notify most central and local government departments in a single online or phone session. The reference expires after 28 days, so use it within that window.
The certified copies of the death certificate that you've ordered. These are what banks, insurers, pension providers, and the Probate Registry will ask to see. The full guidance on how many to order, and how the document is formally structured, is in the death certificate guide.

How many death certificates to order¶

Order more than feels reasonable. The fee is £12.50 per copy in England and Wales whether you order them at registration or by post afterwards, but ordering later adds the registrar's processing time and postal delivery; standard ordering can take several working days. [source: gov-uk/order-death-certificate-2026-04-29.html]

A realistic shopping list for a typical estate is 10 to 15 copies: one per bank, one per pension provider, one per life insurance policy, one for the council, one for the Probate Registry, one or two spares. The full breakdown is in the death certificate guide.

Many institutions return the certificate after they've taken what they need. Several take weeks or months to do so, and you'll want spare copies in circulation while the first batch is still out.

After the appointment¶

With registration done, the immediate sequence is:

Hand the green form to the funeral director so the funeral can be scheduled.
Use Tell Us Once within 28 days. It notifies HMRC, the DWP, the Passport Office, the DVLA, and the local council in a single session, but it does not contact banks, pension providers, or insurers; you handle those separately.
Begin notifying banks, building societies, and pension providers. Most have bereavement teams with their own forms and timelines.
Keep a record of which institution has which certificate. A simple spreadsheet with date sent, contact name, and reference number saves hours of repeated phone calls weeks later.

For most families, the next decision is whether the estate needs a Grant of Probate. The do I need probate guide covers when probate is required and when smaller estates can be settled without it.

If a coroner is involved¶

A coroner is notified when the death is sudden, unexplained, violent, occurred during surgery or in custody, or when no doctor saw the patient in the 28 days before death. In those situations the medical examiner step is replaced by the coronial process, and registration is paused until the coroner's investigation concludes. [source: gov-uk/when-someone-dies-2026-04-29.html]

A coroner's investigation typically takes 4 to 12 weeks for a routine post-mortem. If a full inquest is opened, the timeline can extend to 3 to 6 months and occasionally longer. The coroner's office issues an interim certificate that confirms the fact of death and that an investigation is in progress. Most banks, the Probate Registry, HMRC, and life insurers will accept the interim certificate to release funds, open probate, or pay claims while the investigation continues. A small number of organisations hold off until the final certificate is issued; that's usually resolved by writing to them and explaining.

The funeral director liaises with the coroner about releasing the body for the funeral. The body can often be released for the funeral while the investigation continues; the registration is what waits. The final death certificate is issued within days of the inquest concluding.

Scotland and Northern Ireland: the differences¶

Scotland uses its own registration process, run by National Records of Scotland. The deadline is 8 days rather than 5. The Procurator Fiscal investigates unexpected deaths in place of a coroner. There is no separate "green form"; authority to bury or cremate is part of the registration paperwork. Tell Us Once is available in Scotland. [source: gov-uk/register-a-death-2026-04-29.html]

Northern Ireland uses its own General Register Office. The deadline is 5 days. The coroner system is closer to England and Wales. Tell Us Once is not available; the NI Bereavement Service handles equivalent notifications. [source: gov-uk/register-a-death-2026-04-29.html]

Separate Scottish and Northern Irish guides are planned. This page covers England and Wales only.

Common surprises¶

A few details about registration regularly catch families off guard, and they're worth being prepared for.

The 5-day deadline starts after the medical examiner, not on the date of death. People worry about being late when in fact the clock has not yet started. If the medical examiner takes four working days, you have a further five from that point. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

The informant's address ends up on every death certificate. The person who registers has their full name and address printed on every certified copy that goes to a bank, an insurer, the council, HMRC. The address can't be redacted afterwards. Choose deliberately. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

You don't need every document on the recommended list. The medical paperwork from the medical examiner is the only thing the registrar requires; everything else is helpful but optional. Don't postpone the appointment because you can't find a passport.

Ordering certificates later costs the same per copy but takes longer. £12.50 each, whether at registration or by post afterwards. The difference is the postal turnaround on later orders, which can run to several working days. Order generously the first time. [source: gov-uk/order-death-certificate-2026-04-29.html]

You can decline the medical examiner conversation. Speaking with the medical examiner is voluntary; if the family does not want a phone call, the registrar can proceed once the paperwork has been released. Some families find the call helpful; others find it intrusive. Either is fine. [source: gov-uk/after-a-death-register-the-death-2026-04-29.html]

What this guide doesn't cover¶

This page is for England and Wales only. Scottish registration runs through National Records of Scotland; Northern Irish registration runs through the NI General Register Office. Both have their own deadlines, fees, forms, and notification services. Separate guides for Scotland and Northern Ireland are planned.

This guide also doesn't cover what to do when a death happens abroad, when a stillbirth must be registered, or when a person is missing and presumed dead. Those routes have separate gov.uk processes.

If you're struggling, you don't have to do this alone. Samaritans (116 123, 24/7) | Cruse Bereavement Care (0808 808 1677) | Mind (0300 123 3393)

Next: Tell Us Once

Last verified: 29 April 2026 against gov.uk/after-a-death/register-the-death.