First hour: what to do and what to avoid
Only a doctor can confirm a death, so everything else begins after that. Below is what matters in the first hour, along with the things that commonly turn into mistakes.
- Call 112. The ambulance doctor certifies the death and fills in a medical certificate. If the person had a long illness and a family doctor, the family doctor can issue the certificate instead.
- After a sudden death, wait for the police. In that case 112 also sends the police, who examine the scene and decide whether a forensic examination is needed. It is a routine procedure and implies no suspicion of the family.
- Do not move or dress the deceased before the doctor arrives, especially after a sudden death. There will be time for that later, and a specialist will do it better.
- Find the identity documents of the deceased and your own. You will need both at every step that follows.
- Phone a funeral home as soon as the doctor has left, so that the hearse, a refrigerated coffin and a specialist arrive in good time.
- Sign nothing you have not read, and pay no amount that has not been put in writing. This rule applies to funeral homes, cemeteries and restaurants alike.
Step by step: the first three days
- Getting the medical certificate: the ambulance doctor or the hospital issues a medical certificate of death stating the cause and time. This document is the basis for all the others; without it neither the morgue nor the Public Service Hall (the civil registry office, which many people still call the House of Justice) can do anything.
- Choosing a place for the farewell: a funeral hall, the family home, or a brief goodbye at the morgue. This determines whether the family needs a refrigerated coffin and to which address the hearse will go.
- Registering the death with the civil registry: on the strength of the medical certificate and two identity documents, the Public Service Hall or a community service centre issues the death certificate, usually the same day. Registration is compulsory, and our staff member can do it for the family.
- Sorting out the cemetery: if there is a family grave, the cemetery administration issues permission to open it; otherwise a new plot is allocated through the relevant city hall service. This stage takes a day, and the funeral date depends on it.
- Church and priest: the times of the panikhida (memorial service) and the funeral service are agreed with the church once the funeral date is known. If the family has no confessor of its own, the funeral home contacts the nearest church.
- Days of mourning: relatives and neighbours come to offer condolences, while the family chooses the coffin, wreaths, accessories and the venue for the memorial meal. These choices are often entrusted to a third person - a family friend or the coordinator - so that those closest to the deceased do not have to think about prices.
- Funeral day: first thing, a final farewell at home or in the hall, then the church, the procession to the cemetery, the burial and the memorial meal. The family should have no practical worries on this day; everything ought to be planned the evening before.
- The third day and beyond: by tradition people visit the cemetery on the third day, after which the family begins preparing for the 40th day, the first anniversary and the legal matters described below.
Documents: who issues them and what for
Most documents depend on one another, so the order matters: no death certificate is issued without the medical certificate, no cemetery accepts a burial without the death certificate, and without copies of the death certificate every later legal matter grinds to a halt. The table lists the documents in the order a family will need them.
| Document | Issued by and what is required | Needed for |
|---|---|---|
| Medical certificate of death | Ambulance doctor, hospital or family doctor; issued on the spot against the deceased's ID | Admission to the morgue, transport, registration at the Public Service Hall |
| Forensic report | The forensic bureau, in cases of sudden or violent death; release of the body needs the investigator's permission | Replaces the medical certificate when the cause of death has to be established |
| Death certificate | Public Service Hall or community service centre; medical certificate plus identity cards of both the deceased person and the applicant; usually the same day | Cemetery permit, bank, notary, pension and every procedure that follows |
| Cemetery permit | Cemetery administration or city hall service; death certificate, and for a family grave the burial record card | Digging or opening the grave, confirming the funeral date |
| Embalming record | The funeral home's doctor, after the procedure | A long farewell in a hall, repatriation, air transport |
| Certificate of inheritance | A notary, based on the death certificate, proof of kinship and property documents; the application must be made within six months | Transferring the flat, car, accounts and other property to the heirs |
A tip: as soon as you receive the death certificate, make several copies. The bank, the insurance company, the pension agency and the notary each ask for one separately, and it is best not to let the original out of your hands.
Timeline: what happens on which day
| When | What happens | Who is involved |
|---|---|---|
| First hours | 112, medical certificate, call to the funeral home, hearse or refrigerated coffin, dressing and preparation | Doctor, police if needed, funeral team |
| Day one | Registration at the Public Service Hall, cemetery permit, arrangements with the church, choosing the coffin and accessories | Coordinator, Public Service Hall, cemetery administration |
| Day two | Farewell, receiving visitors, panikhida at home or in the hall, booking the memorial meal, preparing the grave | Family, priest, gravediggers, restaurant |
| Day three or four | The funeral: final farewell, church, procession, lowering of the coffin, memorial meal | Pallbearers, hearse, bus, coordinator |
| Fortieth day | Memorial service at the cemetery or in church, memorial meal | Priest, family, restaurant |
| Six months | Final deadline for telling a notary you accept the inheritance | Heirs, notary |
| First anniversary | Memorial service, memorial meal, installing the headstone, landscaping the grave | Family, priest, headstone workshop |
What a funeral costs and how to plan the budget
Funeral costs fall into several groups, and it helps the family to know each one separately so they can see the whole picture. Funeral home services include the coffin, accessories, hearse, refrigerated coffin, preparation of the body, workers and coordination; this part is fixed and, as a package, starts at 1,200 GEL. The second group is municipal charges: the cemetery plot and the administration fee, which are paid against a receipt and are never part of the funeral home's price. The third group covers church donations and the choir, the fourth is the kelekhi, Georgia's customary funeral feast, whose cost scales with the guest list, and the fifth arrives later: ormotsi (the memorial on the fortieth day), the one-year memorial and the headstone.
Three things help when planning the budget. First, ask every provider for a written estimate showing what is and is not included. Second, decide in advance what matters most to your family - for some it is the coffin, for others the hall, for others the memorial meal - and do not cut corners there, while keeping everything else modest. Third, look into insurance and the employer: many organisations and insurance policies reimburse part of the funeral costs, but they require the receipts together with a death certificate copy. A detailed breakdown of every price, with three sample budgets, is on our funeral costs page.
After the funeral: the 40th day, the anniversary and legal matters
40th day and first anniversary
In the Orthodox tradition two days after the funeral carry special weight: the fortieth day and the one-year anniversary of the death. On both dates the family goes to the grave, a priest holds a panikhida, and afterwards a memorial table is laid. The headstone is also usually installed by the anniversary: within a year the ground has had time to settle, so the foundation will not tilt. For both dates it is worth booking the church and the restaurant a week ahead.
Inheritance and the notary
An application to accept an inheritance must be submitted to a notary within six months of the date of death. Missing the deadline complicates the process and may mean going to court. The notary needs the death certificate, the heirs' identity documents, proof of kinship and documents for the property. The certificate of inheritance is issued once the six months have passed, and until then the property and accounts are effectively frozen.
Pension, bank and utilities
Once the death is registered, the information appears automatically in state databases, but the family has to notify the bank, the insurance company and the utility providers itself. Bank accounts are blocked until the certificate of inheritance is issued, the pension stops from the month of death, and utility contracts pass to the new owner after the inheritance is formalised. The employer needs a copy of the death certificate to settle final pay and any possible assistance.
Relatives abroad
If family members are abroad and cannot arrive in time, the funeral can be postponed by a few days thanks to embalming and a refrigerated coffin. The inheritance application can also be made without travelling - at a Georgian consulate or through a notarised power of attorney.
Frequently asked questions
Who can register a death at the Public Service Hall?
Any adult who has the medical certificate and the deceased's identity document: a family member, an acquaintance or a representative of the funeral home. The applicant's own ID is required as well.
Within how many days must the deceased be buried?
The law sets no strict deadline; by tradition burial takes place on the third or fourth day. With embalming and a refrigerated coffin the farewell can last up to seven days, or longer if relatives are travelling from far away.
Our relative died in a hospital. What happens next?
The hospital itself writes the medical certificate and keeps the body in the clinic's refrigerated unit. The family phones the funeral home, the hearse collects the body from the clinic, and a family member or one of our staff picks up the certificate and ID from the hospital administration.
Is a forensic examination compulsory?
Only when the death was sudden or violent or the cause is unknown, and the police or the prosecutor's office require it. When someone dies at home after a long illness, the doctor's certificate is enough and no examination takes place.
Can we bury in an old cemetery where there is a family grave?
Yes. You will need the burial record card or another document about earlier burials, plus papers proving your kinship with those buried there. With these the cemetery administration, as a rule, agrees to the grave being opened within one day.
What happens if the six-month inheritance deadline is missed?
The deadline can be restored through the courts if you show a valid reason, but that costs time and money. It is therefore better to apply to a notary within the first months, even if the full list of property is not yet known.
This guide is here so that you know what lies ahead. But you need not walk this road alone: whenever it suits you, ring +995 568 33 03 18, whereupon our coordinator will go through every step listed above in your place, from the Public Service Hall to the memorial meal, while you stay close to your family.