What to Do When a Portuguese Citizen Dies in France: 5-Step Official Checklist

1. 1

   Medical certification of death in France (immediately)

   The first step is to have a physician officially certify the death and issue the French medical certificate of death (certificat médical de décès, on the Cerfa paper form or electronically via CertDc), which is required for all funeral and administrative procedures [1]:

   • Death in a healthcare or medico-social facility (hospital, clinic, or EHPAD nursing home): The attending physician on the ward issues the medical certificate of death directly [1]. The facility keeps the deceased in its mortuary chamber and guides the family through the initial formalities.
   • Death at home, at a workplace, or in a public place: Immediately call the emergency medical service SAMU (15), the European emergency number (112), or an on-call doctor so a physician can attend in person to certify the death and complete the medical certificate [1]. If the body is to be transferred to a funeral home (chambre funéraire) before being placed in a coffin, the funeral director must file a prior declaration with the town hall (mairie) of the place of death, and the transfer must take place within 48 hours of death [5].
   • Medico-legal obstacle (obstacle médico-légal) or suspicious death: In the event of a sudden death, a workplace accident, or an unknown cause, the physician ticks the medico-legal obstacle box on the certificate. The police (police nationale) or gendarmerie and the public prosecutor (procureur de la République) then take over, and the body cannot be buried, cremated, or repatriated until judicial clearance is issued by the prosecutor's office (parquet) [1].
2. 2

   Check insurance coverage and appoint a licensed funeral director

   Before signing an estimate, check whether the deceased held funeral insurance, travel insurance, a Portuguese or French mutual health policy (mutuelle), or bank card assistance coverage that arranges and pays for international repatriation:

   • Appointing a funeral operator: International transport of a deceased person and prefectural permits must be handled by a licensed funeral company (entreprise de pompes funèbres habilitée) in France, which will coordinate reception with a funeral agency legally registered in Portugal [5][6].
   • Official directories and professional bodies: Clarvia does not recommend, endorse, or rank commercial providers. To find a licensed funeral operator in France, you can consult the official register of licensed operators at the town hall (mairie) or prefecture of the place of death via Service-Public.fr [1], or contact the national trade federations: the Fédération Nationale du Funéraire (French National Funeral Federation, phone +33 1 55 43 30 00, email [email protected]) [10] and the Fédération Française des Pompes Funèbres (French Federation of Funeral Directors, phone +33 1 46 60 24 24) [11]. In Portugal, funeral providers are regulated by the Directorate-General for Economic Activities (Direção-Geral das Atividades Económicas - DGAE) through the official gov.pt portal [6].
3. 3

   Declare the death at the French town hall (*mairie*) within 24 hours

   Under official rules published on Service-Public.fr, the death must be declared within 24 hours of medical certification (excluding weekends and public holidays) at the civil status office (service d'état civil) of the town hall (mairie) of the municipality where the death occurred [1]:

   • Who declares the death: Any relative or the funeral company authorised by the family may make the declaration [1].
   • Documents to present: The medical certificate of death, proof of identity of the informant, and the civil status documents of the deceased (Portuguese citizen card Cartão de Cidadão or passport, birth or marriage certificate, and family record book livret de famille) [1].
   • Certificates to request: Request several full copies of the French death certificate (acte de décès intégral) as well as several multilingual death certificate extracts on Form C (extrait d'acte de décès plurilingue - Formule C) issued under the 1976 Vienna CIEC Convention [1][2]. Because both France and Portugal are parties to this convention and subject to Regulation (EU) 2016/1191, the multilingual extract is directly recognised by Portuguese authorities without an Apostille or certified translation [2].
4. 4

   Choose between a funeral in France and repatriation to Portugal, and register the death with Portuguese authorities

   Depending on the wishes of the deceased and the family's decision, two main pathways apply:

   • Option A - Burial or cremation in France: Burial or cremation in France must take place no earlier than 24 hours after death and no later than 14 calendar days starting the day after death (prefectural extensions remain possible in special circumstances) [4]. The authorisation to close the coffin (autorisation de fermeture du cercueil) and the burial or cremation permit are issued by the mayor of the municipality of death [1][4].
   • Option B - Repatriation of the body or ashes to Portugal:
     • Prefectural mortuary transit permit (laissez-passer mortuaire): To transport the body out of metropolitan France, the funeral operator applies for a mortuary transit permit (laissez-passer mortuaire) from the prefect (préfet) of the department where the coffin is sealed [5]. Because both France and Portugal are signatories to the Strasbourg Agreement of 26 October 1973 on the Transfer of Corpses, this international mortuary transit permit authorises entry of the body into Portugal. The body must be placed in a compliant hermetically sealed coffin (with a sealed metal liner and embalming care depending on air or road transport) in the presence of a public official [5].
     • Repatriation of a cinerary urn: If cremation takes place in France prior to departure, international transport of the ashes in a sealed urn also requires a prefectural ash transport permit accompanied by the death certificate and cremation certificate [5].
     • Registration and transcription of the death with Portuguese authorities: The death of a Portuguese citizen in France must be registered in the Portuguese civil registry (registo de óbito) [2]. This registration is free of charge and can be completed at the territorially competent Portuguese consulate in France (Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Bordeaux, or Strasbourg) or directly in Portugal at any civil registry office (Conservatória do Registo Civil) under the Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Institute of Registries and Notary Services, phone +351 211 950 500) [2][7]. For the Paris consular district and consular emergencies, you can contact the Consulado-Geral de Portugal em Paris (Consulate General of Portugal in Paris, phone +33 1 73 01 16 80, weekend and holiday consular emergency line +33 6 95 83 57 11, email [email protected]) as well as the Centro de Atendimento Consular (Consular Assistance Centre, phone +33 1 73 01 16 80) [2][3][12].
5. 5

   Administrative, social security, banking, and estate formalities in both countries

   Once the French death certificate and its Portuguese transcription have been obtained, several institutions must be notified in France and Portugal:

   • Portuguese social security benefits and bereavement grants: If the deceased was covered by the Portuguese social security system, family members can apply to Segurança Social (Portuguese Social Security, phone +351 210 545 400 or +351 300 502 502) [8][9]:
     • Reembolso de Despesas de Funeral (reimbursement of funeral expenses to the person who proves payment), which must be claimed within 90 consecutive days of the date of death when there is no beneficiary entitled to the subsídio por morte [9].
     • Subsídio por Morte (lump-sum death grant paid to an eligible spouse, de facto partner, or descendants), which must be claimed within 180 days from the registration of the death, along with a survivor's pension (pensão de sobrevivência) [8].
   • French health insurance and pension funds: If the deceased worked, resided, or received a pension in France, notify the local health insurance fund (Caisse primaire d'assurance maladie - CPAM, for any statutory lump-sum death benefit capital décès and reimbursement of final medical expenses), the basic pension fund Assurance Retraite (phone +33 9 71 10 39 60 or 3960 within France), and supplementary pension schemes (Agirc-Arrco) [1][13].
   • Banks, taxation, and cross-border succession (EU Regulation No 650/2012): Notify French and Portuguese banks (presenting the death certificate freezes sole accounts pending estate settlement, while in France funeral expenses up to the statutory cap may be paid directly from the deceased's account upon presentation of the invoice) [1]. In Portugal, the death must be reported to the tax authority (Autoridade Tributária e Aduaneira) before the end of the third month following the death, and heirs formalise the declaration of heirs (habilitação de herdeiros) via an Espaço Óbito or Balcão das Heranças desk of the Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado [7]. If the deceased owned real estate or resided in France, you can instruct a French notary office through Notaires de France (Chamber of French Notaries, phone +33 1 44 90 30 00) [14].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   Declaration of death, medical certificate, and initial formalities (F16507) — Direction de l'information légale et administrative (Service-Public.fr)
2. [2]
   Civil Registry: Death of a Portuguese citizen abroad (Registo Civil: Óbito) — Portal das Comunidades Portuguesas - Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros (MNE)
3. [3]
   Contacts and Consular Emergency - Consulate General of Portugal in Paris — Ministério dos Negócios Estrangeiros (Consulado-Geral de Portugal em Paris)
4. [4]
   Burial and cremation time limits in France (F14935) — Service-Public.fr
5. [5]
   Transport of a body before or after placement in a coffin and mortuary transit permit (F35706) — Service-Public.fr
6. [6]
   Funeral services regulation - Notification to the Directorate-General for Economic Activities (DGAE) — Portal Único de Serviços Digitais (gov.pt)
7. [7]
   Civil Death Registration and Espaço Óbito (Registo Civil de Óbito) — Instituto dos Registos e do Notariado (Justiça.gov.pt)
8. [8]
   Applying for the Death Grant (Subsídio por Morte) from Segurança Social — Segurança Social / Portal gov.pt
9. [9]
   Applying for Funeral Expense Reimbursement (Reembolso das Despesas de Funeral) from Segurança Social — Segurança Social / Portal gov.pt
10. [10]
    Legal notice and contact details - Fédération Nationale du Funéraire (FNF) — Fédération Nationale du Funéraire
11. [11]
    Contact the Fédération Française des Pompes Funèbres (FFPF) — Fédération Française des Pompes Funèbres
12. [12]
    Consular Assistance Centre (Centro de Atendimento Consular) - Consular support in France — Portal Único de Serviços Digitais (gov.pt)
13. [13]
    Reporting the death of a pensioner and applying for a survivor's pension — Assurance Retraite (CNAV)
14. [14]
    Estate settlement and official directory of French notaries — Conseil supérieur du notariat (Notaires de France)