What to Do When Someone Dies in Denmark: 5-Step Official Checklist

1. 1

   Obtain Medical Certification of Death

   • Hospital or hospice death: When your family member dies in a Danish hospital, nursing home, or hospice, an attending physician conducts the external post-mortem examination (ligsyn) and completes the electronic medical death certificate (dødsattest) via the national health data system of Sundhedsdatastyrelsen [1] [3].
   • Death at home: If the death occurs at home and was expected, contact the deceased's general practitioner (egen læge) or the regional out-of-hours medical service (lægevagten) so a doctor can attend the residence, confirm the death, and issue the electronic dødsattest [1] [3].
   • Unexpected, sudden, or unexplained death: Under the Danish Health Act (Sundhedsloven), if a death is sudden, accidental, violent, or of unknown cause, the physician must notify the Danish police (Politiet), who coordinate a forensic medical examination (retslægeligt ligsyn) with Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed before releasing the body for burial, cremation, or international transport [1] [4].
2. 2

   Complete Civil Death Registration and Obtain Official Certificates

   • Automatic civil registry update: Once the physician submits the electronic dødsattest, the death is recorded automatically in the Central Person Register (Det Centrale Personregister - CPR), which immediately updates municipal records and notifies public agencies [1].
   • Filing the funeral and death request (Anmodning om begravelse eller bisættelse): Within 2 working days of the death (or as soon as practical before the 8-day burial deadline), next of kin or an authorized funeral director must submit the official registration and burial/cremation request digitally via Borger.dk using MitID (or by paper form if the notifier lacks Danish digital identification) [1] [2].
   • Registrar authority and certificates: The local parish civil registrar (kirkekontoret / begravelsesmyndigheden) in the deceased's parish of residence (or the municipal civil registry in Sønderjylland) processes the filing and issues the official death and person certificate (personattest with death annotation) in Danish and English upon request [1] [2].
3. 3

   Arrange Burial, Cremation, or International Repatriation

   • Statutory 8-day timeline: Under Danish law, burial (begravelse / jordfæstelse) or cremation (bisættelse) must generally take place within 8 days of death (counting the day of death), unless the local burial authority grants a brief extension for special family or logistical reasons [1] [2].
   • Licensed funeral director (bedemand): Families normally engage a licensed Danish funeral director (bedemand), who coordinates mortuary release once Page 1 of the dødsattest is signed, submits the burial application via Borger.dk, and books the cemetery or crematorium [1] [2].
   • International repatriation (ligpas and legalization): If the deceased's body or cremated ashes must be repatriated outside Denmark, Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed issues the mandatory international laissez-passer for a corpse (ligpas) once medical and forensic clearance, embalming, and a hermetically sealed zinc-lined coffin are verified [4]. If foreign authorities outside the EU require authentication of Danish civil status documents, Udenrigsministeriet provides the Hague Apostille or consular legalization on the official personattest [5].
4. 4

   Notify Social Security, Pensions, Banks, and Claim Survivor Support

   • Automatic account freeze and public notifications: When the death is registered in the CPR register, the deceased's bank accounts (including joint accounts), payment cards, NemKonto, MitID, and Digital Post are automatically frozen by financial institutions until the probate court issues an estate certificate [1] [6].
   • Funeral grant (begravelseshjælp) and survivor benefits: Udbetaling Danmark is notified automatically to stop state pensions (folkepension) and social benefits, and next of kin can apply digitally via Borger.dk for the means-tested statutory funeral grant (begravelseshjælp), supplementary labour-market pension lump sums (ATP Livslang Pension), and any survivor transition allowance (efterlevelseshjælp) [1] [2].
   • Tax and private policies: The Danish Tax Agency (Skattestyrelsen) receives automatic notice from the CPR system, while family members should directly contact private occupational pension funds, life insurers, trade unions (a-kasse), landlords, and subscription providers [1] [6].
5. 5

   Administer the Estate and Complete Probate (*Skifteretten*)

   • Initial contact with Skifteretten: Following the death registration, the Probate Court (Skifteretten), a division of the local district court under Danmarks Domstole, sends a notice to the primary contact person listed on the burial request and schedules a telephone or in-person guidance meeting roughly 3 to 4 weeks after the death [1] [6].
   • Do not dispose of assets before the probate certificate (skifteretsattest): Until Skifteretten issues the official skifteretsattest, heirs must not empty the deceased's home, sell assets, divide personal belongings, or pay unsecured creditors, as premature disposal can make heirs personally liable for the deceased's debts [1] [6].
   • Forms of estate administration (skifteformer) and inheritance tax (boafgift): Depending on solvency and family structure, Skifteretten releases the estate under simplified low-value distribution (boudlæg for estates with net assets below the statutory threshold after funeral expenses), spousal retention of an undivided estate (uskiftet bo), private probate by solvent heirs (privat skifte), or court-appointed executor administration (bobestyrerbo) [6]. In private probate, heirs file an opening balance sheet (åbningsstatus) within 6 months and a final estate inventory (boopgørelse) to settle Danish estate and inheritance tax (boafgift and tillægsboafgift) [1] [6].
   • Cross-border estates and foreign heirs: Because Denmark has an opt-out from the EU Succession Regulation (Regulation 650/2012), Danish private international law governs estates domiciled in Denmark, and foreign heirs who lack MitID can execute a probate power of attorney (skiftefuldmagt) so a representative in Denmark can deal with Skifteretten and Udenrigsministeriet legalization requirements on their behalf [5] [6].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   Guide: Når livet slutter (When life ends - official bereavement checklist) — Borger.dk
2. [2]
   Begravelse og bisættelse (Burial, cremation, and funeral grant in Denmark) — Borger.dk
3. [3]
   Sundhedsdatastyrelsen - Nationale sundhedsregistre — Sundhedsdatastyrelsen
4. [4]
   Rettigheder som patient - En god afslutning på livet — Styrelsen for Patientsikkerhed
5. [5]
   Legalisation and Apostille of Danish documents — Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark (Udenrigsministeriet)
6. [6]
   Danmarks Domstole - Skifteretten og dødsbo — Danmarks Domstole