Removing a body out of England or Wales.
There is no restriction on moving bodies within England and Wales, but you need to notify the coroner for the district in which the body is lying if you want to move the deceased to Scotland, Northern Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands, or overseas. Names and telephone numbers of coroners are listed in your local phone book.
To do this you will need a form 104 (Form of notice to a coroner of intention to remove a body out of England) which can be obtained from any registrar or a coroner. You will also need to give the form 104 to the coroner and enclose any certificate for burial or cremation already issued.
The coroner will acknowledge receipt of your notice and let you know when the body can be moved – this is usually four clear days from when your notice was received. In urgent situations, it may be possible to bring this forward.
Repatriation of a body from abroad, to England and Wales
There is no provision to register a death which occurred outside of England and Wales. Where a death occurred outside England and Wales and the family require a burial or cremation to take place within England and Wales it is the duty of the registrar to make preliminary checks regarding the place and cause of death and to issue the necessary documentation.
The responsibility to issue the certificate of no liability to register on application rests with the registrar in the sub-district where the burial or cremation is to take place.
