First steps
Only two things are urgent on the first day. Everything else can wait until tomorrow.
When someone dies, the people around them are suddenly facing a list that seems endless. The good news: almost nothing is genuinely urgent on day one.
This page orders the steps by real urgency rather than alphabetically. What is marked “today” truly is; the rest can wait.
Wherever the death occurred, two steps come first. Everything else follows.
Everything else — bank, insurers, employer, cancellations — can comfortably wait a day or two. Nobody will hold it against you.
In Switzerland a death must be reported to the civil registry office (Zivilstandsamt) at the place of death within two days. This is the only genuinely binding deadline on this page.
In practice the funeral director handles it, using the medical certificate and the deceased person's identity papers. You do not have to go anywhere.
The office then issues the death certificate. You will need several copies: bank, insurers, pension fund, employer. Ask for five at once — it saves a second trip.
Identity card or passport, the family record book or a birth certificate, a marriage certificate if applicable, and the residence permit for foreign nationals. If something is missing, say so: there is nearly always a way around it.
Burial or cremation, in Switzerland or in the country of origin, a religious or a secular ceremony: these choices determine the rest of the timetable.
If the person left written instructions, those take precedence. Otherwise the next of kin decide. Where there is disagreement, Swiss practice follows the order of family proximity.
A repatriation to the country of origin takes three to twelve days depending on the destination. If that is your intention, say so in the first call: what happens in Switzerland depends on it, not least the type of coffin.
None of this is urgent, but all of it has to be done. A list beats memory:
We give every family a printed list with the addresses and deadlines. Many people keep it on the kitchen table for weeks and tick items off as they go.
Do not sign anything on site before you have called. The prices local funeral firms quote to foreign families are often well above the going rate, and a signed contract is hard to undo.
We contact the local firm and the Swiss representation, check the costs and run the repatriation from Switzerland. That is almost always faster and cheaper than arranging everything on the spot.
Questions & answers
Yes, but “straight away” does not mean within the minute. The deceased may remain at home for some hours; many families need that time. Call when you are ready — we answer day and night.
Reckon on five. The bank, the pension fund, the health insurer and the employer each ask for an original. Further copies can be ordered later, but it takes time.
The next of kin decide. Where there is disagreement, the order of family proximity applies: spouse or registered partner, then children, then parents. In practice a calm conversation settles it almost every time.
In almost every case, yes — at home, on our premises or in a viewing room. Tell us: we prepare the person and give you as much time as you need.