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

1. 1

   Medical Certification of Death in Monaco

   • Death in a hospital or residential care facility: When a death occurs at the Princess Grace Hospital Centre (Centre Hospitalier Princesse Grace, CHPG) or in a public residential care facility in the Principality (such as Résidence du Cap Fleuri or Résidence A Qietüdine), the hospital physician performs the clinical examination and issues the official medical death certificate (certificat médical de décès) [1][2]. The facility generally transmits the required documentation or hands the certificate to the family and the appointed funeral director [1][2].
   • Natural death at home: If the death occurs at a private residence in Monaco, immediately call the attending physician or the emergency medical services (Monaco Fire and Emergency Service at 18 or 112, or the mobile emergency unit of the Centre Hospitalier Princesse Grace) so a licensed physician can certify the death and draw up the medical death certificate [1][2]. The body of the deceased must not be moved before this medical certification is completed [1].
   • Suspicious, accidental, or public-place death: In the event of a violent, sudden, or unexplained death or a death occurring in a public place, notify the Police Department (Direction de la Sûreté Publique, telephone 17 or +377 93 15 30 15) immediately [1][5]. Under the Monegasque Civil Code (published on the official legal portal LégiMonaco) and the Code of Criminal Procedure, a judicial police officer assisted by a forensic physician conducts a formal inquiry, and burial or transport of the body requires prior authorization from the Public Prosecutor General (Parquet Général) [1][5].
2. 2

   Registering the Death at the Mairie de Monaco and Obtaining Official Death Certificates

   • Competent authority and reporting timeframe: Every death occurring within the territory of Monaco must be declared promptly (in practice within 24 hours excluding weekends and public holidays, and strictly before any funeral operation) at the Civil Registry Department (Service de l'État Civil) of the Mairie de Monaco (Place de la Mairie, telephone +377 93 15 28 51) [1][2].
   • Authorized declarants and required documents: The declaration is made by a relative, an authorized representative, or, most commonly, the licensed funeral director appointed by the family [1][2]. Present to the Mairie de Monaco the medical death certificate, the declarant's identification, and the deceased person's identity and civil status records (Monegasque identity card, resident permit, passport, family record book / livret de famille, or birth and marriage certificates) [1][2].
   • Issuance of official Death Certificates (actes de décès): The civil registry officer at the Mairie de Monaco records the death and immediately issues full certified copies of the death certificate (copies intégrales de l'acte de décès) [1][2]. Additional certified copies can subsequently be requested free of charge in person, by mail, or online through the official public service portal of the Gouvernement Princier de Monaco (MonServicePublic / MonGuichet.mc) [1][2]. If the deceased was a foreign citizen, also notify their home country's consulate or embassy so the death can be recorded in their national civil registry.
3. 3

   Organizing the Funeral, Burial, Cremation, or International Repatriation

   • Funeral service providers in Monaco: After checking whether the deceased held a pre-paid funeral contract or travel repatriation insurance, the family coordinates funeral arrangements with the Principality's funeral operator (Société Monégasque de Thanatologie / Pompes Funèbres de Monaco), working closely with the Civil Registry Department and the Municipal Domain Department of the Mairie de Monaco [1][2].
   • Burial or cremation and municipal permits: The Mairie de Monaco issues the burial permit (permis d'inhumer) or the coffin-closing and cremation permit upon presentation of the death certificate and the medical certificate confirming no medico-legal impediment (as well as confirmation that any battery-powered pacemaker or prosthesis has been removed) [1][2]. Burials take place at the Cemetery of Monaco, while cremations are carried out at the crematory in Nice or neighboring French municipalities under Franco-Monegasque agreements, followed by placement of the urn in a columbarium niche, a family vault, or scattering of ashes at the Garden of Remembrance [2].
   • International repatriation of remains and Apostille: If the body or cremated ashes must be repatriated to another country, the health and interior authorities of the Gouvernement Princier de Monaco (Direction de l'Action Sanitaire and Département de l'Intérieur) issue the international corpse transit permit (laissez-passer mortuaire) once the remains are sealed in a hermetic coffin [1]. Where a Monegasque death certificate must be used legally abroad, the Hague Apostille is issued free of charge by the Directorate of Judicial Services (Direction des Services Judiciaires) at the Palais de Justice in Monaco [1][5].
4. 4

   Notifying the Caisses Sociales de Monaco, Pension Funds, Banks, and Insurers

   • Lump-sum death grant (capital décès) and medical reimbursements: If the deceased was an employee or retiree covered under the Monegasque general social security system, report the death to the Caisses Sociales de Monaco (CSM - Caisse de Compensation des Services Sociaux, telephone +377 93 15 43 43) [3]. Subject to contribution eligibility rules, priority dependents (unseparated surviving spouse, dependent children, or dependent ascendants) can claim the lump-sum death benefit (capital décès) as well as reimbursement of final medical expenses [3]. If the deceased was a self-employed worker insured with CAMTI/CARTI or a civil servant covered by the State Medical Benefits Office (SPME), submit the death certificate to the respective fund [1][3].
   • Survivor pensions from the Autonomous Pension Fund (CAR): For an insured private-sector employee or pensioner in Monaco, submit an application for a survivor's pension (pension de réversion for a surviving spouse or orphan's pension) and check eligibility for social allowances with the Autonomous Pension Fund (Caisse Autonome des Retraites) administered by the Caisses Sociales de Monaco [4].
   • Monegasque banks, life insurers, and employer: Provide a certified copy of the death certificate to the employer, life insurance companies, and banking institutions in Monaco [1]. Upon receiving notice of death, Monegasque banks freeze sole-name accounts held by the deceased (while generally allowing direct payment of funeral bills upon presentation of the official funeral home invoice) until the notarial succession instruments are presented [5].
5. 5

   Opening and Settling the Estate Before a Notary in Monaco and Cross-Border Coordination

   • Estate settlement through a Monegasque notary: Under the Monegasque Civil Code published on LégiMonaco, settling an estate opened in the Principality of Monaco (particularly where there is a will, real estate, substantial bank or custody accounts, or multiple heirs) is handled through one of the notarial offices (études de notaires) in Monaco [5]. The notary searches for any last will and testament (holographic, public/authentic, or mystic will), completes the formal opening of the will, draws up the deed of heirship (acte de notoriété) confirming the legal heirs, prepares the estate inventory, and drafts the distribution deeds [5].
   • Favorable inheritance tax regime in Monaco: In the Principality of Monaco, inheritance tax (droits de mutation par décès) applies only to assets located in Monaco (or having their legal situs in Monaco) and depends solely on the degree of kinship between the deceased and the heir: the rate is 0 percent (full exemption) in the direct line (between parents and children or grandparents and grandchildren) and between spouses [5]. Tax rates are 8 percent between siblings, 10 percent between uncles/aunts and nephews/nieces, 13 percent between other collateral relatives, and 16 percent between unrelated persons. The estate tax declaration must be filed with the Directorate of Tax Services (Direction des Services Fiscaux) of the Gouvernement Princier de Monaco within six months of death (or twelve months if the death occurred outside Europe) [1][5].
   • International coordination (Law No. 1.448 on Private International Law): Because Monaco is not a member of the European Union, cross-border successions in Monaco are governed by the Monegasque Code of Private International Law (Law No. 1.448), which in principle subjects the entire estate to the law of the state of the deceased's last domicile, unless the deceased made an explicit choice of their national law (professio juris) in a valid will [5]. Where heirs reside abroad or real estate or financial assets are held in France or another jurisdiction, the Monegasque notary coordinates tax filings and inheritance certificates with foreign notaries [5].

Official Authorities & Verified Contacts

Official Sources Checked by Clarvia

1. [1]
   Requesting a Death Certificate and Civil Registry Procedures in Monaco — MonServicePublic - Gouvernement Princier de Monaco
2. [2]
   Civil Registry Department (Service de l'État Civil) and Municipal Funeral Formalities — Mairie de Monaco
3. [3]
   Medical Benefits and Payment of the Lump-Sum Death Grant (Capital Décès) — Caisses Sociales de Monaco (CSM)
4. [4]
   Autonomous Pension Fund (CAR) - Survivor Pensions and Social Allowances — Caisses Sociales de Monaco (CSM)
5. [5]
   Monegasque Civil Code - Civil Status Records, Successions, and Wills — LégiMonaco - Gouvernement Princier de Monaco