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

1. 1

   Medical Certification of Death

   • Death in a hospital: When a death occurs in a public or private hospital supervised by the Ministry of Public Health, the attending hospital physician immediately issues the medical certificate of death stating the identity of the deceased person, the date and time of death, and the clinical cause of death [1].
   • Death at home: If your family member died at home from known natural causes, the family must contact the attending physician or an authorized doctor together with the local mukhtar (neighborhood or village public official) to draw up the medical report required for civil registration [1] [2].
   • Forensic and judicial involvement: In the event of a sudden unattended death, road accident, or suspicious circumstances, the Internal Security Forces (ISF) and the competent public prosecutor under the Ministry of Justice appoint an official forensic pathologist before the body can be released to the family [1] [4].
2. 2

   Civil Registration of the Death and Official Certificates

   • Declaration through the mukhtar and civil registry offices: In Lebanon, the official death declaration (Wathiqat Wafat) is completed with the assistance of the mukhtar of the place of death or place of family registration (Nufus registry), signed by the physician and two adult witnesses, and filed with the local office of the Directorate General of Personal Status [2].
   • Statutory registration deadlines: Lebanese personal status law requires the death to be declared within 30 days of the date of death when it occurs in Lebanon (or within 45 days through the competent Lebanese diplomatic mission if a Lebanese national dies abroad), after which administrative fines or a judicial registration procedure apply [2] [4].
   • Updating the family register and obtaining extracts: Once the death is recorded by the Directorate General of Personal Status, the deceased person's entry is updated on the family census register, enabling the family to obtain multiple official death certificates and an updated family civil status extract (Ikhraj Qayd A'ili), which is required for all banking and estate procedures [2].
3. 3

   Funeral Arrangements, Burial, and Repatriation

   • Local burial permit: The burial permit is issued upon presentation of the medical death certificate and the mukhtar's attestation, in coordination with the local municipality and the religious or community authority managing the cemetery where the deceased person will be buried [1] [2].
   • Sanitary rules and funeral transport: Transporting the body between different districts in Lebanon or keeping the deceased in a hospital mortuary must comply with the public health regulations enforced by the Ministry of Public Health [1].
   • International repatriation and document legalization: If the remains must be repatriated abroad or if a Lebanese death certificate must be used in another jurisdiction, the Ministry of Public Health issues the mortuary transit permit (following hermetically sealed coffining), and civil status documents must be legalized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants and the destination country's embassy [1] [2].
4. 4

   Social Security, Pension Funds, Banks, and Insurance

   • Funeral grants and NSSF end-of-service indemnities: If the deceased person was registered under the general employee scheme, eligible family members must notify the National Social Security Fund to claim the lump-sum funeral expense allowance and the settlement of the end-of-service indemnity or survivor entitlements [3].
   • Public sector cooperatives and professional syndicates: For civil servants or military personnel (Cooperative of State Employees) or members of professional orders (lawyers, engineers, physicians), a separate notification must be submitted to their respective pension fund to initiate survivor pension payments [3].
   • Bank accounts and insurance policies: Lebanese banks freeze individual accounts held by the deceased person upon notification of death, except for joint accounts governed by a survivorship agreement under the Law of 19 December 1961, until the heirs present the court inheritance decree and the tax clearance certificate issued by the Ministry of Finance [4] [5].
5. 5

   Opening and Settling the Estate (Hasr Irth and Inheritance Tax)

   • Judicial determination of heirs (Hasr Irth): In Lebanon, inheritance rules depend on the applicable confessional or civil personal status law. The heirs must petition the competent court (the civil court of first instance for non-Muslim communities governed by the Law of 23 June 1959, or the competent Sharia or Druze religious court for Muslim communities) within the judicial system overseen by the Ministry of Justice to obtain the official certificate of heirship (Hasr Irth) [4].
   • 90-day inheritance tax declaration: Heirs are legally required to report the opening of the estate to the Inheritance Duty Department (Rasm al-Intiqal) of the Ministry of Finance within 90 days of the death, and to submit the complete estate file (official Form T1 together with bank and real estate asset inventories) within 6 months (extended to 12 months if the death occurred abroad) [5].
   • Tax clearance and transfer of assets: Once the inheritance tax assessment is settled (applying statutory exemptions for the surviving spouse and descendants), the Ministry of Finance issues the official tax clearance certificate required to release bank funds and register property transfers with the Land Registry (Cadastre) [4] [5].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   Official Portal and Hospital Public Health Regulations — Ministère de la Santé Publique (MOPH)
2. [2]
   Death Registration and Family Civil Status Extracts — Direction Générale de l'État Civil (DGCS)
3. [3]
   Funeral Grants and End-of-Service Indemnity Procedures — Caisse Nationale de Sécurité Sociale (CNSS)
4. [4]
   Competent Courts, Personal Status, and Certificates of Heirship — Ministère de la Justice (République Libanaise)
5. [5]
   Official Inheritance Tax Declaration Form (Model T1) — Ministère des Finances (Direction des Recettes)