First Month After Death Checklist Scotland

The first month after a death in Scotland is the most administratively dense period you will face. Deadlines start running from the date of death — some within days, some within weeks — and missing them can mean losing payments, incurring unnecessary costs, or forfeiting legal rights. This checklist organises everything that needs to happen in the first 30 days so you can work through it systematically rather than reactively.

Days 1–8: Register the Death

Death registration in Scotland is governed by stricter rules than in England. You have 8 days from the date of death (not 5 as in England and Wales) to register, and the register must be signed by the end of that period — not just the appointment booked.

Get the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (Form 11) from the attending doctor or hospital. In Scotland, this is now typically emailed directly to the National Records of Scotland, but the family still needs to attend a registration appointment to complete the process.

Book a registration appointment with the local registrar. In most areas this can be done by phone, and remote or video registration is available across Scotland including the Highlands and Islands — useful if the death occurred away from home.

Order multiple death certificate extracts at the appointment. These are official copies of the death entry, each costing £12 from the National Records of Scotland. You will need them for banks, insurers, pension providers, the DWP, and other organisations. Order at least 8–10 copies at registration — ordering more later means posting applications and waiting. Running out at a critical moment causes delays.

What the registrar gives you:

• A unique reference number for Tell Us Once (use within 28 days — see below)
• Form 14 (Certificate of Registration of Death) — this goes to the funeral director and legally permits the funeral to proceed

Days 1–28: Tell Us Once

At the registration appointment, ask for your Tell Us Once reference number. Use it within 28 days at gov.uk/tell-us-once or by phone to notify the DWP (cancels state pension, triggers BSP check), HMRC, DVLA, Passport Office, and local council (council tax, housing benefit, electoral roll) in a single step.

Week 1–2: Immediate Financial Steps

Apply for Bereavement Support Payment (BSP)

If the deceased was your spouse, civil partner, or (from February 2023) your cohabiting partner with dependent children, apply for BSP via the DWP using Form BB1 (available at GOV.UK or from any Jobcentre Plus). The deceased must have paid at least 25 weeks of National Insurance contributions.

The deadline is critical. Claim within 3 months of death and payments are backdated to the date of death. Claim between 3 and 21 months and you only receive payments from the date of application. After 21 months, the claim is refused entirely.

Payment rates:

• Standard rate (no dependent children): £2,500 lump sum + £100/month for up to 18 months
• Higher rate (with dependent children): £3,500 lump sum + £350/month for up to 18 months

Apply for Funeral Support Payment

If you are on a qualifying benefit (Universal Credit, Pension Credit, Income Support, Housing Benefit, Tax Credits, or Jobseeker's Allowance), apply for Funeral Support Payment through mygov.scot. This is a Social Security Scotland payment — separate from any DWP claim.

The payment covers a flat rate of £1,327.75 plus the actual reasonable cost of burial, cremation, or alkaline hydrolysis. The application can be made before the funeral has taken place. The deadline is 6 months after the funeral.

Apply for a Scottish Welfare Fund Crisis Grant

If you have no money to cover immediate costs — food, travel to the funeral, utility bills — contact your local council to apply for a Scottish Welfare Fund Crisis Grant. These are not loans: there is no repayment. Decisions are typically made by the next working day. This is a one-off emergency measure, not ongoing support.

Joint and Sole Bank Accounts

Joint accounts pass automatically to the surviving holder without Confirmation — inform the bank and provide a death certificate extract.

Sole accounts are frozen until the bank is notified. Banks may informally release small amounts (up to £5,000) for funeral costs — ask directly. Formal access to the full balance requires Confirmation.

Week 2–4: Ongoing Notifications

Work through the following in the second and third weeks, as capacity allows. There is no hard deadline for most of these, but earlier is better.

• Life insurance companies: notify and begin claims. Most life policies pay outside the estate and do not require Confirmation.
• Occupational and private pension providers: notify immediately. Some schemes require notification within a specific window or survivor benefit calculations are affected.
• Mortgage lender: many mortgages include life insurance covering the balance on death — check the documents.
• Landlord or utility providers: clarify the tenancy situation; utilities may transfer to the surviving occupant's name.
• Employer: notify HR for any death-in-service benefits, and ask urgently about private medical insurance continuation. If the deceased held employer-sponsored PMI, the continuation window is typically 30 days from the date of death. After that, surviving family members must apply for a new policy with full medical underwriting — meaning any conditions being treated may be excluded.
• Vehicle insurer: reissue the policy in the surviving partner's name if the car was jointly owned or used.

Days 14–30: Begin Estate Assessment

If you are working through what you are entitled to as a survivor in Scotland — BSP, Funeral Support Payment, council tax exemptions, and Confirmation — the Scotland Survivor Benefits Guide covers each step with the specific Scottish rules, deadlines, and forms.

Find the will. Check with the deceased's solicitor, their bank (many offer will storage), and the Scottish Wills Register. If no will is found, the estate is distributed under Scottish intestacy rules — which treat spouses, cohabiting partners, and children differently.

Assess whether it is a small or large estate:

• Small estate: gross assets under £36,000 (no deductions for debts or mortgage). Contact your local Sheriff Court — they provide free assistance with the C1 form (the small estate Summary Application). Court staff can guide you through the process.
• Large estate: gross assets over £36,000. Confirmation is required through the Sheriff Court, and the fees are £351 for estates between £50,000 and £250,000, and £705 for estates over £250,000. Engaging a Scottish solicitor is common but not mandatory.

Council Tax — Class F Exemption: the property occupied by the deceased is exempt from council tax from the date of death until Confirmation is granted, then for a further 6 months after Confirmation — but only if the property is unoccupied during this period. Notify the local council as soon as possible.

Month 1 — Urgent Warning for Cohabiting Partners

If you were living with the deceased as an unmarried partner and they died without a valid will, you have no automatic right to inherit under Scottish intestacy law — regardless of how long you lived together. To make a claim on the estate, you must apply to court under Section 29 of the Family Law (Scotland) Act 2006.

The deadline has historically been 6 months from the date of death. The Trusts and Succession (Scotland) Act 2024 proposes extending this to 12 months, but secondary legislation bringing this into force was still pending as of mid-2026. You cannot rely on the 12-month figure yet.

Do not wait to see how the estate unfolds. Contact a Scottish family law solicitor in the first week if there is no will and you were cohabiting. Missing this deadline forfeits any court-based claim entirely — it cannot be extended.

The Scotland Survivor Benefits Guide covers everything survivors need to navigate in Scotland after a bereavement — from BSP and Funeral Support Payment to cohabitant rights, Confirmation, and the tax and council concessions that apply in the months ahead.

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