Scotland - Get a Declaration of Presumed Death

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Procedure

Apply In-Person:

1. To Get a Declaration of Presumed Death, the applicant should find a solicitor to help him/her to raise a court action to declare a death by using the following link
2. An application form will be provided to the applicant by the solicitor.
3. The applicant has to fill in all the necessary details in the application form. (Incomplete applications are not accepted)
4. Make sure that the applicant has attached all the necessary documents that are mentioned in the “Required Documents” section of this page.
5. The applicant has to attach photocopies of the required documents along with the application form while submitting it.
6. Submit all the documents with the completed form to the solicitor.
7. Then the Solicitor should raise an action in court.
8. The solicitor will need to convince the court that the missing person has died.
9. If the court agrees a missing person has died, the court will grant a 'declarator of death'.
10. The applicant has to pay the prescribed fee as requested.
11. The court will then inform the National Records of Scotland (NRS), who will register the death.
12. So, then the applicant can order a death certificate from the NRS.
13. This entire process can be completed within 30 days or as per the timeline advised by the respective department authority.

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Required Documents

• Completed application form
• Application form
• Supporting evidence: The applicant'll need to provide supporting evidence to establish that the person is missing and presumed dead. This may include:
• A detailed account of the circumstances surrounding the person's disappearance.
• Any police reports or investigations related to the disappearance.
• Statements from witnesses who can provide information about the person's disappearance.
• Documentation showing efforts made to locate the person, such as search and rescue reports, newspaper advertisements, or social media posts.
• Medical evidence: The applicant may need to provide medical evidence to support the declaration. This can include:
• Medical reports or opinions regarding the person's mental or physical health.
• Reports from medical professionals who have treated or assessed the person.
• Evidence of any illnesses or conditions that may have affected the person's ability to survive.
• Affidavit or sworn statement: The applicant may be required to provide an affidavit or a sworn statement affirming the truth of the information he/she has provided.

Office Locations & Contacts

Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service
Saughton House
Broomhouse Drive
Edinburgh
EH11 3XD
Tel 0131 444 3300
Fax 0131 443 2610
Email - [email protected]
Contact link
Solicitorlink

Eligibility

Anyone can raise an action in court as long as the missing person was living in Scotland for the last 12 months before they went missing.
If they weren't living in Scotland, the applicant can also raise an action if you:

• Are the spouse or civil partner of the missing person
• Have lived in Scotland for at least the last 12 months before you make a claim

Fees

• The applicant has to pay the prescribed fee as per the authority’s request.

Validity

Explain the time until which the certificate/document is valid.
e.g. Birth Certificate Valid Forever

Documents to Use

Please attach documents that can be used by people. e.g. links

Sample Documents

Please attach sample completed documents that would help other people.

Processing Time

• This entire process can be completed within 30 days or as per the timeline advised by the respective department authority.

Related Videos

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'.

Instructions

• Applicants must complete the application form before submitting it. Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
• Applicants must provide genuine information while applying for this procedure.

Required Information

Details of applicant

• Name of the applicant
• Address
• Email
• Telephone
• Date of birth
• Gender

Details of Missing Person

• Name
• Date of birth
• Age
• Gender
• last known address
• Date of missing

Need for the Document

• A presumption of death occurs when a person is thought to be dead by a group of people despite the absence of direct proof of the person's death, such as the finding of remains attributable to that person.

Information which might help

• For more information link

Other uses of the Document/Certificate

Please explain what are other uses of obtaining this document/certificate.
e.g. Birth Certificate can be used as proof of identity.

External Links

Link

Others

If the applicant believe someone is dead, but their body is missing, he/she can't get a death certificate.
The applicant will need a death certificate if he/she wants to:

• Access any money someone owns in their name.
• Carry out what the person has asked for in their will.
• Stop bills for any money they owe.
• End the applicant’s marriage or civil partnership because his/her partner is missing.