Hong Kong Burial Permit and Cremation Permit: What You Need and How to Get Them

Before any burial or cremation can take place in Hong Kong, a specific statutory authorization must be obtained. The exact document required depends on how the person died — and getting the wrong form, or missing a step, delays the entire funeral.

Two Pathways: Natural Deaths vs. Coroner's Cases

Natural Deaths

When a death results from natural causes and was attended by a registered medical practitioner, the doctor issues:

1. Form 18 — Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death (required for death registration)
2. Form 2 — Medical Certificate (Cremation), if cremation is intended

Form 2 must be requested from the same attending physician at the time of issuing Form 18. If you forget to request it then, obtaining it later creates unnecessary complications.

From Form 2, the Cremation Permit (Form 3) is issued by the Department of Health. This is the actual permit that authorizes cremation. Your funeral director or the FEHD Joint Office handles the step between Form 2 and Form 3 in practice, but the family must ensure Form 2 is in hand before any cremation booking can be confirmed.

For burial (rather than cremation), the death registration process similarly must be completed first. The FEHD manages burial bookings at public cemeteries, and a certified copy of the death entry (the official death certificate) is required. There is no separate "burial permit" form independent of the death registration — the registration itself is the authorization to proceed.

Coroner's Cases (Unnatural or Sudden Deaths)

If the death was sudden, occurred at home without recent medical attention, or involved unnatural causes, the family does not receive Form 18 or Form 2 from a doctor. Instead:

• The police are notified and refer the case to the Coroner's Court
• The body is moved to a public mortuary (Victoria, Fu Shan, or Kwai Chung)
• The Coroner investigates and may order a post-mortem
• Once satisfied, the Coroner issues Form 11 — the Certificate of Order Authorising Burial/Cremation of Body

Form 11 replaces both Form 18 and the Cremation Permit (Form 3) for Coroner's cases. It authorizes either burial or cremation, and is the document submitted to the FEHD when booking the cremation session.

A full inquest can take one to six months, but in practice Form 11 is often issued earlier, allowing the funeral to proceed before the inquest concludes.

Booking Cremation Through the FEHD

Once the relevant permit is in hand (Form 3 for natural deaths, Form 11 for Coroner's cases), the family or their funeral director submits an Application for Private Cremation (Form FEHB 135) to the FEHD Joint Office.

Government cremation is available at several FEHD crematoria including Cape Collinson, Diamond Hill, and Wo Hop Shek. Fees are set by the FEHD:

• Adult cremation: HK$1,220
• Child cremation: HK$650
• Certificate of Cremation: HK$140

These are government rates. Private crematoria charge significantly more.

Religious Exemptions: The Muslim Autopsy Waiver

Islamic law prohibits both cremation and unnecessary autopsy. When a Muslim dies from sudden or unnatural causes in Hong Kong, the Coroner's Court is automatically involved — which creates direct conflict with religious obligations.

To seek an autopsy waiver, the family must urgently petition the Coroner. This requires:

• A letter from the deceased's family physician detailing a pre-existing medical history consistent with the cause of death
• A written petition from the immediate family confirming satisfaction with medical care, waiving insurance claims, and expressing urgency for burial

The Coroner has full discretion to grant or reject the waiver. If rejected, the autopsy is legally unavoidable regardless of religious imperative. The Incorporated Trustees of the Islamic Community Fund (which manages Cape Collinson Muslim Cemetery and Happy Valley Muslim Cemetery) can assist families in navigating this process.

After Cremation: The Certificate of Cremation

Once cremation is complete, the FEHD issues a Certificate of Cremation (HK$140). This document is required to apply for a niche in a public columbarium, to scatter ashes at a designated Garden of Remembrance or at sea, or to release the ashes for any other permitted form of disposal.

Keep multiple copies of the Certificate of Cremation — you may need it for columbarium applications, overseas transfer of ashes, and estate administration records.

Public Cemetery Burial: The Six-Year Rule

For families choosing burial over cremation, Hong Kong's severe land scarcity means permanent graves are extremely rare, restricted to private cemeteries (such as Aberdeen Chinese Permanent Cemetery) and specific religious burial grounds.

Coffin burials in FEHD public cemeteries are temporary. The government imposes a mandatory six-year exhumation requirement: after six years, families must engage a registered mason, apply for a Permit to Remove/Exhume Remains (Form FEH(L)86A), and disinter the remains under FEHD supervision. If fully decomposed, remains can be cremated or placed in an urn grave. If not fully decomposed, the family faces a temporary re-burial and further exhumation a year later.

Families who ignore the six-year deadline face government-enforced exhumation, with ashes deposited in a communal grave at Sandy Ridge Cemetery — an outcome that many families, particularly those with strong traditional Chinese burial beliefs, find deeply distressing.

The permit paperwork is manageable if you know the sequence. The Hong Kong Funeral Laws & Consumer Rights Guide includes a complete document checklist and step-by-step flowchart covering both natural death and Coroner's case pathways — so nothing gets missed at the time when you can least afford to make mistakes.

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