Repatriation to Georgia - returning the deceased from overseas

Repatriation in brief: what it involves and what we handle

Repatriation is the official transfer of a deceased person from one country to another under international sanitary and consular rules. It differs from ordinary transport in two ways: the body must be prepared to withstand a journey of several days, and every document has to satisfy the law of both countries. A single error in the paperwork can hold a coffin at customs for days, so repatriation is above all a matter of precise documentation, not just logistics.

We work with a network of partner funeral homes in more than 30 countries. In Germany, Italy, Greece, Spain, Poland, Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, Israel and the USA this means a local funeral home starts on the family's case within an hour of our call, collects the deceased from the mortuary and arranges the local documents, while we take care of the Georgian side. The service includes:

• advice in the first few hours: what the family needs to do on the spot, and what is best avoided so the process does not become harder;
• bringing in a partner funeral home in the country of death and collecting the deceased from the mortuary or hospital;
• obtaining the local death certificate, its legalisation or apostille, and a translation;
• liaising with the Georgian embassy or consulate and obtaining the consular certificate;
• embalming to international standards, a hermetically sealed zinc-lined coffin and an outer wooden coffin;
• booking air cargo, or road transport from neighbouring countries;
• customs clearance at Tbilisi or Kutaisi airport and a hearse waiting on arrival;
• having the foreign death certificate registered in Georgia (this is done at Public Service Halls, also known as Houses of Justice) and organising the funeral;
• the reverse journey too: returning a foreign national or emigrant who died in Georgia to their home country.

Destinations: timeframes and means of transport

The timeframe depends on three things: how quickly the local authority issues the death certificate, whether a forensic examination is required, and how often cargo flights run to Tbilisi. From neighbouring countries, the road is often faster than waiting for a flight.

If the death was sudden or violent, the local forensic examination sets the pace, and the process can stretch to two weeks. Throughout that time the partner funeral home keeps the deceased in refrigerated storage, and we update the family every day on where the case stands.

Stages of a repatriation

1. The call and gathering details: the coordinator asks which city and institution the deceased is in, who the contact person on the spot is, whether there was insurance or an employer, and where in Georgia the funeral is planned. Within two hours we send a written estimate based on these details.
2. Bringing in the partner: the local funeral home collects the deceased from the mortuary, establishes whether an examination is needed and starts on the death certificate. If a family member is on the spot, they sign just one power of attorney.
3. Legalising the documents: the certificate is apostilled or legalised and translated, and the embalming certificate, sanitary permit and consular certificate from the Georgian diplomatic mission are obtained. This is the longest stage and accounts for most of the total time.
4. Preparing for the journey: the deceased is embalmed to international standards and placed in a zinc-lined coffin, which is soldered shut under the seal of the sanitary authority, which in turn goes inside a wooden outer coffin. Every airline and every border requires this.
5. Transport: space is booked on the next cargo flight and the coffin travels to Tbilisi under an air waybill, or sets off by road from a neighbouring country. The family is given the flight number and arrival time in advance.
6. Arrival and funeral: in Tbilisi our broker files the customs declaration, the hearse takes the coffin home or to a hall, the foreign certificate is entered in the Georgian civil register, and the funeral follows Georgian tradition.

Repatriation costs: prices and expenses

The cost of repatriation is made up of several independent parts, and we show the family each one separately: the local funeral home's services, embalming and the zinc-lined coffin, consular fees, air cargo charged by weight, and the work on the Georgian side. The estimate is ready within two hours of your call, and airline and consular fees are included at exactly the amount shown on the receipt.

The most variable part of the price is air cargo: a zinc-lined coffin inside a wooden one weighs 150 to 250 kilograms, airlines charge by weight, so distance and transit stops change the total directly. The second factor is the city within the country, since a smaller town adds local transport to the airport. The third is whether a forensic examination is needed, which adds days of mortuary storage.

Documents you will need

Repatriation documents fall into two groups: those the family provides and those we prepare together with the partner funeral home. The first group is small, and to get started a photo sent from your phone is often enough.

Provided by the family

• a copy of the deceased's Georgian passport or ID card, plus the passport of any other country whose citizenship they held;
• the applicant's ID and proof of kinship: a birth or marriage certificate or an extract showing the family composition;
• a notarised power of attorney in favour of us and the partner funeral home, drawn up on our template in Tbilisi or at a Georgian consulate;
• a copy of the insurance policy, the employer's contact details or social fund information, if any of these exist.

Prepared by us and the partner funeral home

• the local death certificate with an apostille or consular legalisation and a Georgian translation;
• the medical certificate of the cause of death and a statement confirming no infectious disease was involved;
• the embalming certificate and the zinc coffin sealing report from the local sanitary authority;
• the permit to transport human remains, known in Europe as the laissez-passer mortuaire;
• the consular certificate from the Georgian diplomatic mission authorising entry of the remains into Georgia;
• the air waybill and the customs declaration in Tbilisi, after which the foreign certificate is registered so that a Georgian death certificate can be issued.

Special situations

Migrant workers and the diaspora

Most repatriations involve Georgians working in Italy, Greece, Germany, Poland, Turkey and Russia. The family back home often knows nothing about the local institutions, and the money is frequently collected by the diaspora or by colleagues. We work both with the family in Tbilisi and with friends abroad, give everyone one shared estimate, and accept partial payment in stages.

Insurance and assistance schemes

Travel or work-related insurance often covers repatriation in full, but only if the insurer is involved from the very start. That is why we ask about a policy on the first call and contact the assistance company ourselves. There is also a state scheme to help families who cannot cover the costs; its terms are revised periodically, and we help prepare the application.

A criminal investigation abroad

After a road accident, other accident or violence, the deceased is at the disposal of the local investigators, and the prosecutor's permission is needed for release. During that time the partner funeral home deals with the investigator, while we explain the timescales and the family's rights. Such cases take two to three weeks, and mortuary storage days appear on their own line of the estimate.

Opening the zinc coffin in Georgia

A soldered zinc coffin can be opened in Georgia for a final farewell with the permission of the sanitary authority, and our specialist does this in the house or in a hall. Usually permission is granted if the embalming was done properly and the journey took no more than ten days.

Reasons families trust us with repatriation

• Around the clock, 24/7: because of time differences, calls from abroad often come at night. Our coordinator and duty lawyer answer at any hour, and the partner funeral home starts work that same morning.
• Experience: repatriations from more than 30 countries have taught us which consulate takes how many days, which airline accepts transit, and which document tends to hold things up at customs in which country.
• Transparency: every cost appears as its own line, and we hand over receipts for foreign fees. Payment in stages is possible, and any insurance payout goes directly to the family.
• No need to travel: every signature is given by power of attorney or at the consulate. The family stays in Tbilisi and knows each day where the coffin is and which stage remains.
• One contact across two countries: instead of a foreign mortuary, a consulate, an airline and customs, the family deals with a single coordinator who manages all of them.

Frequently asked questions