ProcedureEdit
For deaths that occurred due to natural causes
- The Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance states that deaths that occurred due to natural causes must be reported/registered within 24 hours. In most cases, the registered medical practitioner who attended to the deceased during his or her last illness will sign and issue a Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death (Form 18). Those in charged of registering the death must take the form to the Registry of Deaths for registration of the death.
- The Hong Kong Island Deaths Registry or Kowloon Deaths Registry are accepting application for registration of deaths that occurred due to natural causes on weekdays and Saturday (morning), except if its a general holiday. During Sundays and general holidays, you can approach the Births and Deaths General Register Office from 10:00 am to 12:30 pm for the procedure. Death registration services for natural deaths are also available in some designated police stations in the New Territories such as Cheung Chau and Mui Wo for deaths that occurred in the respective districts.
For deaths that occurred due to unnatural causes
- For deaths that occurred due to unnatural causes such as poison or violence, the case must be reported to a Coroner.
- The Coroner may conduct a post-mortem examination or an inquest to determine the cause of death. When the cause of death is determined, the Coroner will inform the Registrar of Deaths to about the death.
- The Registrar will then notify the family member of the deceased in writing after that the death have been registered.
Registration of a death referred by the Coroner is only processed at the Births and Deaths General Register Office in Admiralty. Certified copy of the death entry may be obtained from that Office or any of the other two Deaths Registries in Hong Kong Island and in Kowloon after you have received the Registrars notification on the completion of death registration. Those who would like to obtain a copy of the death entry are required to provide the Registrar's notification letter upon application and pay HK$140 for one certified copy.
If you need to enquire about the registration of a death which was reported to the Coroner, you can telephone the Births and Deaths General Register Office at (852) 2867 2784 within office hours.
Required DocumentsEdit
To register a death, submit the following documents (original copies):
- Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death (Form 18), signed and issued by the registered medical practitioner who attended the deceased person during his or her last illness
- The deceased persons Hong Kong identity card or travel document
- The applicant's (the one registering the death) Hong Kong identity card or travel document
Office Locations & ContactsEdit
General Enquiries
Hotline : (852) 2824 6111
Fax : (852) 2877 7711
Email : [email protected]
The Births and Deaths General Register Office
3/F, Low Block,
Queensway Government Offices,
66 Queensway,
Hong Kong Map
(MTR Admiralty Station - Exit C1)
Phone : (852) 2867 2784
Office Hours:
Monday to Friday : 8:45 am - 4:45 pm (except General Holidays)
Saturdays: 9 am - 11:30 am (except General Holidays)
Sundays and General Holidays: 10:00 am - 12:30 pm (only for registration of deaths from natural causes)
Services provided: Birth and adoption registrations, search of birth, death and adoption records, issue of certified copies of birth, death and adoption entries, addition and alteration of name of the child in birth entries. (This registry office only handles death registration referred from the Coroner during weekdays and Saturdays.)
Hong Kong Island Deaths Registry
18/F, Wu Chung House,
213 Queen's Road East,
Wan Chai, Hong Kong Map
(MTR Wan Chai Station - Exit A3)
Phone:(852) 2961 8841
Office Hours:
Monday to Friday : 9:00 am - 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm 4:30 pm
Saturdays : 9:00 am - 12:30 pm
Closed on Sundays and General Holidays
Kowloon Deaths Registry
1/F, Cheung Sha Wan Government Offices
303 Cheung Sha Wan Road
Cheung Sha Wan, Kowloon Map
(MTR Sham Shui Po Station - Exit C1)
Phone: (852) 2368 4706
Office Hours:
Monday to Friday : 9:00 am - 12:30 pm and 2:00 pm 4:30 pm
Saturdays : 9:00 am - 12:30 pm
Closed on Sundays and General Holidays
EligibilityEdit
Provide eligibility criteria's for going through this procedure.
FeesEdit
- Registering a death: Free
- Certified copy of the death entry: HK$140
If you had not applied for a certified copy of a death entry at the time of the death registration but need to get one afterwards, you may need to apply for a search of death records first and you will have to pay a search fee:
- Particular Search: HK$140
- General Search: HK$680
ValidityEdit
Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid. e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever
Documents to UseEdit
Please attach documents which can be used by people who would like to follow this procedure.
Sample DocumentsEdit
Please attach sample completed documents which would help other people who would like to follow this procedure.
Processing TimeEdit
For deaths that occurred due to natural causes
The process of registering a death normally takes 30 minutes to be completed, and a certified copy of a death entry (commonly known as Certificate of Death) is usually issued in 10 minutes.
For deaths that occurred due to unnatural causes
It usually takes the Coroner 1 to 6 months to determine the cause of death. If the cause of death is determined by the Coroner and made known to the Registrar, the death will be registered within 1 week and the family of the deceased will be notified in writing.
Related VideosEdit
Videos explaining the procedure or to fill the applications. Attach videos using the following tag <&video type="website">video ID|width|height<&/video&> from external websites. Please remove the "&" inside the tags during implementation. Website = allocine, blip, dailymotion, facebook, gametrailers, googlevideo, html5, metacafe, myspace, revver, sevenload, viddler, vimeo, youku, youtube width = 560, height = 340, Video ID = Can be obtained from the URL of webpage where the video is displayed. e.g In the following url "http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y0US7oR_t3M" Video ID is "Y0US7oR_t3M".
InstructionsEdit
Please provide instructions on obtaining the certificate/documents. e.g. The state office holds birth records since january 1908.
Required InformationEdit
Applicants are required to provide information on the deceased person's occupation, nationality, and marital status.
Need for the DocumentEdit
A Death Certificate is a document issued by a registrar stating the date, location and cause of a person's death. This document will be issued after the death has been registered.
In Hong Kong, a certified copy of a death entry is issued as proof that the death was properly registered.
Following are procedures on how you can register a death in Hong Kong.
Information which might helpEdit
Obtaining a Permit for the Removal of a Dead Body from Hong Kong:
If, after registration of a death from natural causes or the issue of Form 11 from the Coroner for a death from unnatural causes, you may take the dead body out of Hong Kong for burial, by approaching the relevant death registries and obtain a Permit for the Removal of Dead Body from Hong Kong.
Permits for the Removal of a Dead Body from Hong Kong are issued free of charge. Applicants need to complete an application form (Form SF/BDR/3), which is available at the respective death registries, and give information such as the personal particulars of the deceased, as well as when and where the dead body will be removed from Hong Kong. In some cases, applicants may be asked to produce evidence that permission to import the dead body into another territory has been obtained before the permit is issued.
To know more: Services and support for the bereaved
Other uses of the Document/CertificateEdit
Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate. e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.
External LinksEdit
- Hong Kong Government Website:
OthersEdit
More information which might help people.