What to Do When a Citizen of Ukraine Dies in Canada: 5-Step Official Checklist

1. 1

   Obtain Medical Certification of Death and Coroner or Medical Examiner Clearance in Canada

   Before a funeral provider in Canada can transfer the deceased or register the death, an authorized health professional or coroner/medical examiner must pronounce death and issue the provincial Medical Certificate of Death (in Quebec, the Attestation of Death, form SP-3) [1][2][5]:

   • Death in a hospital, hospice, or long-term care facility: The attending physician, nurse practitioner, or registered nurse in an extended role pronounces death, completes the Medical Certificate of Death, and authorizes release of the remains to your chosen funeral provider [2][4].
   • Expected death at home under palliative care: Contact the palliative care team or attending physician under the established home-care protocol so they can pronounce death and sign the medical certificate [2].
   • Sudden, unexpected, or unattended death: Call 911 immediately and do not move the body [2]. Police and emergency medical services will respond, and the provincial Coroner or Medical Examiner Service (for example, the Office of the Chief Coroner in Ontario, the BC Coroners Service in British Columbia, the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Alberta or Manitoba, or the Bureau du coroner in Quebec) will investigate the cause and manner of death and issue the medical certificate (and, if remains are being exported out of the province, any required coroner's out-of-province/international export certificate) before releasing the body [2][4][5].
2. 2

   Check Insurance, Appoint Licensed Funeral Providers in Canada and Ukraine, and Contact the Embassy or Consulate of Ukraine

   Check immediately whether your family member had travel insurance, international repatriation insurance, life insurance, or employer coverage before signing independent funeral contracts. If a policy is active, contact the insurer's emergency assistance coordinator first.

   • Appointing a provincially licensed funeral provider in Canada: Appoint a licensed funeral home or transfer service in the Canadian province where the death occurred, regulated by provincial bodies such as the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (phone 1-844-493-6356; email [email protected]) in Ontario or Consumer Protection BC in British Columbia, or located through the national Funeral Service Association of Canada [3][4][6].
   • Coordinating with a receiving funeral service in Ukraine: If repatriating the body or cremated ashes to Ukraine, the Canadian funeral director coordinates transport and arrival logistics with a receiving funeral provider in Ukraine (ритуальна служба - a municipal enterprise, комунальне підприємство, or licensed funeral service, ліцензована похоронна служба, in the Ukrainian municipality of burial) [7]. Clarvia provides regulatory and association directories for orientation only and does not endorse, recommend, or rank specific commercial providers.
   • Contacting the Embassy or Consulate of Ukraine in Canada: Notify the Ukrainian consular mission covering the province of death: the Embassy of Ukraine in Canada in Ottawa (310 Somerset Street West, Ottawa, ON K2P 0J9; phone +1 613-230-2961; emergency line +1 613-617-2335; email [email protected]), the Consulate General of Ukraine in Toronto (phone +1 416-763-3114; email [email protected]), or the Consulate General of Ukraine in Edmonton [7][8]. The Ukrainian consular office advises on repatriation documentation, cancels the deceased's Ukrainian passport, and issues consular clearance for transporting remains across the Ukrainian border [7].
3. 3

   Register the Death with Provincial Vital Statistics in Canada, Obtain a Canadian Apostille, and Complete Ukrainian Registry Steps

   • Provincial or territorial Vital Statistics registration in Canada: Your appointed Canadian funeral director submits the family's statement of death alongside the Medical Certificate of Death to the provincial or territorial civil registry - such as ServiceOntario (Office of the Registrar General) in Ontario [2], the BC Vital Statistics Agency in British Columbia [4], or the Directeur de l'état civil in Quebec [5]. The funeral director issues a Funeral Director's Statement of Death for immediate domestic notifications and obtains the burial or cremation permit, while you order official provincial Death Certificates (including a long-form / certified copy showing cause of death if required for international transport) from Vital Statistics [2][4][5][7].
   • Canadian Apostille and Ukrainian translation: Because the Hague Apostille Convention entered into force for Canada on January 11, 2024, Ukrainian embassies and consulates in Canada no longer perform traditional consular legalization of Canadian civil documents [8][9]. Instead, obtain an official Apostille on the Canadian provincial Death Certificate (and related transport certificates) through Global Affairs Canada or the designated provincial Competent Authority (such as the Official Documents Services in Ontario, the Ministry of the Attorney General in British Columbia, or the Ministère de la Justice in Quebec), and have the documents translated into Ukrainian with notarized/certified translation [7][8][9].
   • Civil status recognition in Ukraine (DRACS / MFA): Under Ukrainian law, while domestic deaths in Ukraine are registered within 3 days at a Civil Status Registration Department (відділ державної реєстрації актів цивільного стану - ДРАЦС Міністерства юстиції України, via a ЦНАП administrative service centre or the портал Дія) to obtain a Ukrainian death certificate (свідоцтво про смерть) and an extract for the funeral grant (витяг з Державного реєстру актів цивільного стану громадян про смерть для отримання допомоги на поховання), a Canadian provincial Death Certificate bearing a Canadian Apostille and a certified Ukrainian translation is legally recognized in Ukraine under the Hague Apostille Convention and coordinated through the Department of Consular Service of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine (Департамент консульської служби МЗС України) [7][8][11].
4. 4

   Choose Between International Repatriation to Ukraine and Local Burial or Cremation in Canada

   • International repatriation of casketed remains or cremated ashes from Canada to Ukraine: Under Canada Border Services Agency Memorandum D19-9-3 and the Canadian Quarantine Act, exporting human remains from Canada requires a provincial Death Certificate, a provincial burial/transit or export permit (and Coroner/Medical Examiner export clearance where required), and compliance with international air carrier packaging rules [10]. To import a coffin or urn into Ukraine, the Embassy of Ukraine in Canada outlines the mandatory Ukrainian border and sanitary requirements (enforced in Ukraine alongside the State Service of Ukraine on Food Safety and Consumer Protection, Держпродспоживслужба / sanitary-epidemiological clearance, довідка санітарно-епідеміологічної служби, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, МЗС України) [7]:
     • For a body in a coffin: The official Canadian Death Certificate, a medical or public health certificate confirming the cause of death and the absence of infectious disease, an embalming certificate, a funeral home certificate confirming that the hermetically sealed zinc-lined coffin (оцинкована герметична труна) contains no extraneous objects, and Official sealing of the coffin, all bearing an Apostille and Ukrainian translation, plus proof of a reserved burial plot in Ukraine and details of the accompanying person [7][10].
     • For cremated ashes: The official Canadian Death Certificate, the Certificate of Cremation, and a funeral home/crematorium certificate confirming the absence of extraneous items inside the sealed urn or capsule (капсула з прахом), each apostilled and translated into Ukrainian [7][10].
   • Local burial or cremation in Canada: If the family chooses burial or cremation in Canada, the Canadian funeral director arranges the cemetery or crematorium service directly using the provincial burial/cremation permit [2][3].
5. 5

   Complete Survivor Pension, Funeral Benefit, Tax, and Estate Administration in Ukraine and Canada

   • In Ukraine (Pension Fund of Ukraine and Notarial Inheritance within 6 Months):
     • Pension Fund of Ukraine (Пенсійний фонд України - ПФУ): If the deceased received a Ukrainian pension or was insured in Ukraine, eligible family members or the person who arranged the burial can apply to the Pension Fund of Ukraine (in person at a PFU service centre or online via the Diia Portal / PFU web portal) for the Ukrainian funeral assistance benefit (допомога на поховання) and, for eligible dependents, the survivor's pension (пенсія у зв'язку з втратою годувальника) using the apostilled and translated death documentation [11].
     • Opening an inheritance case within 6 months (Нотаріальна палата України / Ministry of Justice): If the deceased owned real estate, bank accounts, or other assets in Ukraine, heirs must submit an application to accept the inheritance (заява про прийняття спадщини) within the strict statutory deadline of 6 months from the date of death before a Ukrainian state or private notary (registered in the Inheritance Register of the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine, Спадковий реєстр Міністерства юстиції України, with professional directory guidance available through the Notary Chamber of Ukraine - Нотаріальна палата України) [12]. Heirs residing in Canada can execute a notarized and apostilled inheritance application or power of attorney (or sign it at a Ukrainian Consulate in Canada) to forward to a notary in Ukraine before the 6-month deadline expires [8][12].
   • In Canada (Service Canada, Retraite Québec, CRA, and Provincial Probate):
     • Service Canada and Retraite Québec: Notify Service Canada at 1-800-277-9914 to cancel the Social Insurance Number (SIN), Employment Insurance (EI), Old Age Security (OAS), and Canada Pension Plan (CPP) payments, and apply for the lump-sum CPP Death Benefit (Form ISP-1200, $2,500 base benefit or up to $5,000 with the eligible top-up) and CPP Survivor's Pension (Form ISP-1300) if your family member contributed to the CPP [1][13]. If the deceased worked in Quebec, apply to Retraite Québec at 1-800-463-5185 for Québec Pension Plan (QPP) benefits [14].
     • Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and Provincial Probate: The legal representative (executor, estate trustee in Ontario, or liquidator in Quebec) must report the death to the Canada Revenue Agency at 1-800-959-8281, file the Final T1 Income Tax and Benefit Return by April 30 of the following year (or within 6 months of death if the death occurred in November or December), obtain a CRA Clearance Certificate (Form TX19) before distributing Canadian assets, and apply for provincial Probate (Certificate of Appointment of Estate Trustee or Grant of Probate) where required to release Canadian bank accounts or property [2][15][16].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   What to do when someone dies - Notify the federal and provincial governments — Government of Canada
2. [2]
   What to do when someone dies in Ontario — Government of Ontario (ServiceOntario)
3. [3]
   A Guide to Death Care in Ontario (Consumer Information Guide) — Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO)
4. [4]
   After a Death - British Columbia Vital Statistics and Support — Government of British Columbia
5. [5]
   Declaration of death and certificates — Directeur de l'état civil (Gouvernement du Québec)
6. [6]
   Funeral Service Association of Canada — Funeral Service Association of Canada (FSAC)
7. [7]
   Documents for repatriation of deceased citizens to Ukraine — Embassy of Ukraine in Canada (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine)
8. [8]
   Consular legalization of official documents and Canadian Apostille rules — Consulate General of Ukraine in Toronto (Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine)
9. [9]
   Requirements for document authentication (Apostille) in Canada — Global Affairs Canada (Government of Canada)
10. [10]
    Memorandum D19-9-3: Importation and Exportation of Human Remains and Other Human Tissues — Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA)
11. [11]
    Payment of funeral assistance (Виплата допомоги на поховання) — Diia Portal / Pension Fund of Ukraine (Пенсійний фонд України)
12. [12]
    Notarial documents and guidance (Документи нотаріату) — Notary Chamber of Ukraine (Нотаріальна палата України)
13. [13]
    Canada Pension Plan (CPP) Death Benefit and Survivor's Pension — Government of Canada (Service Canada)
14. [14]
    Survivors' Benefits and Contact Information - Québec Pension Plan — Retraite Québec
15. [15]
    Doing taxes for someone who died (Final T1 Return) — Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)
16. [16]
    Clearance certificate (Form TX19) — Canada Revenue Agency (CRA)