FUNERAL PLANS IN SPAIN

ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT FUNERAL PLANS IN SPAIN.

 

CREMATION AND FUNERAL SERVICES IN SPAIN.

You don't really want to be trying to sort this out at the time of death. Planning ahead will remove a huge amount of stress and worry for those that are left behind. Make sure your family know that you have a will and a funeral plan and where to find the documents or details. Costs can sometimes dictate that a cremation is the best way forward, and its still not cheap. Prices will continue to rise year on year. Imagine what a cremation will cost in 20 years time? Buying a cremation or funeral now, can and will save you a lot of money in the years to come. 

With the huge number of cremations and burials taking place in Spain (November2021) amidst the already huge numbers of Covid 19 pandemic deaths in such a short period of time, the funeral parlours and crematoriums have been pushed to the limits. It is therefore no wonder that prices have been pushed up and once up, rarely come down.

 

SAVE MONEY ON PRE-PAID FUNERAL PLANS AND CREMATIONS IN SPAIN. 

Pre-paid and advance funeral planning and cremations can save you a lot of money in the future as you are paying for the type of service and funeral you want, in advance.  Some Funeral Plan companies will or may let you cover the payments on a monthly basis once you have paid an initial deposit and spread the costs over a period up to 5 years.

Using an actuary or someone that will handle everything for you, even for cremations, will ensure that all the correct paperwork and the actual funeral or cremation goes smoothly. These actuaries will deal direct with you in English and may also attend the funeral or cremation to make sure that your wishes are carried out  and that everything does go to plan.

With Pre-Paid Funeral plans and funeral insurances in Spain, you know that thee will not be any hidden or sudden additional charges suddenly thrown at you as you have already agreed on the type of service, where and how it is going to take place, and how much it is going to cost.

 

CREMATION SERVICES IN SPAIN.

Most towns and cities in Spain have a crematorium of some kind, or there will be one relatively close by. Visting your local town hall will provide you with the location of all the local crematoriums and burial centers near you. The Spanish are aware that more and more Expats are requesting burials and cremations in Spain as this has become their home. Many may speak English and you can always arrange a translator so that you can discuss your needs directly with them. 

Alternatively you can request a call back, and our Funeral and Cremation specialist in Spain will call you back to discuss your ideas and needs and provide you with the most suitable or most affordable options for you and your family. This is a totally private and confidential service and you are not obligated to buy any funeral or cremation services and products from us. 

 

 JUST A SIMPLE CREMATION PLEASE. 

Simple cremations can be pre-paid, prepared and handled by the Spanish Crematoriums through our funeral agents, whereby they will arrange for the deceased body to be collected and taken to the nearest funeral parlour or Crematorium. Upon your request they can carry out the cremation, at a time to suit them, which can often be weeks if they are busy, and the ashes disposed of at the Crematorium.

This might seem to some like being a little heartless, but when some people live to a grand old age, most of their friends have passed before them, and money could be needed elsewhere. A direct cremation is one of the cheapest options available in Spain and can be modified to suit the needs of the family. You have the option to add services, such as a memorial service, flowers, a Priest if you are religious, or just have a simple scattering of the ashes.

 

WHERE TO BUY URNS?

Urns can be purchased online, at Spanish funeral parlours and crematoriums. If you have a Funeral or cremation plan in force, then the funeral provider will let you know what type of urn you will be supplied with to contain the ashes in. If you want something more elaborate, discuss it and have a look at those available. If you venture from the standard Urn, you might be charged an additional fee. 

The urn will not just be a simple cardboard box, but more likely to be a wooden box with the ashes inside in a sealed plastic bag or container. It is neatly prepared, dignified and presentable with a suitable handle and the name of the deceased on the label. 

 

ASHES AND URNS AND WHAT TO DO NEXT.

If you have opted for a cremation in Spain, you will be asked if you require the ashes. If you do, they will need to be placed in a suitable urn or container for transportation. Urns can vary from a simple wooden box to an elaborate brass urn costing hundreds of Euros. 

The ashes should be in a suitable urn or container and the actual ashes will be in a sealed plastic wrap inside that container. If you purchase the lore expensive urns, lie the brass ones, they may come with a sealed screw type bung in the base and the ashes left loose inside. So be careful if you decide to take a peek and open it. 

 

RETURN OF THE ASHES.

You don't have to be involved in the cremation at all, other than to pay for the cremation. You can arrange for the cremation, have the ashes returned to you or disposed of by the crematorium. The crematorium will arrange all of the paperwork, or if you have a funeral plan, the funeral plan organisers will sort it all out for you. Once all the paperwork has been organised and the cremation has taken place, they will contact you to collect the ashes and sign a variety of documents relating to the finalisation of a legal cremation.

 

SCATTERING ASHES IN SPAIN.

Scattering the ashes in Spain is allowed but you cant just scatter them anywhere you like in Spain or in the sea. You can be fined up to €15,000 for illegally scattering ashes in a public place or getting caught trying to do so. You cant scatter them near a beach or public area or in a public park or tourist attraction. If you want to scatter them at sea, you will be required to be at a minimal distance from the shore.

 

FLYING HOME WITH THE ASHES.

if you are proposing to fly back to your home country with the ashes in your suitcase or hand luggage, be sure to notify the airlines as soon as possible as some airlines do not permit ashes to be carried in cabin baggage and customs may wish to inspect the contents as the ashes can be picked up on scanners as an organic material and a search of your baggage may be required. Showing the death certificate and cremation certificates at the boarding gates without prior permission or notifications could cause delays.

 

REPATRIATION OF THE ASHES FROM SPAIN TO THE UK OR BACK.

Repatriation insurance within a life insurance policy, travel insurance and funeral plan insurances in Spain, can all have the option to cover the repatriation of the ashes or body to or from the UK or to your home country.

The body can be cremated in Spain and transported back to the UK or your home country for scattering or burial. You can do this yourself, even if you don't have any travel, life or funeral insurance. Once you have taken possession of the ashes, along with the cremation and death certificates, you can fly or drive home, or organise a courier or removals company to take them for you, as long as they are aware of the contents.

Some people may wish to have a burial or cremation in the United Kingdom prepared for when the time comes., or for burial in a family crypt or burial plot. If the death has occurred outside the UK, it will be necessary for you to arrange for the transportation of the body and coffin back to the UK or your country of choice. 

If you don't have a funeral plan, funeral insurance or travel insurance that can do this for you, be prepared for some daunting paperwork, legal legwork and high costs, as the process of preparing a body can be difficult to do on your own.

If you are planning to do this on your own, you might first want to contact the British Embassy. At this point we are assuming that you have dealt with the initial paperwork of notification of the death, obtained the death certificate and that the body is being kept at the mortuary or funeral parlour and being prepared for transportation. If not, have a look at what yo do when someone dies in Spain. 

It is possible to transport the body by road or sea, but the preferred method is usually by air. You can, in some cases fly on the same fight and airline that is transporting the body for you. 

 

PREPERATION OF THE BODY FOR REPATRIATION

Simply placing the body in a coffin and transporting the body is not permitted. Before the body can be prepared for transportation it will need to conform to the guidelines of the country it is leaving and must conform to the requirements and standards of the country it is going to. These conditions will depend upon the country that the body is being transported to and may require the body to be embalmed, prior to departure.

 

A LEAD LINED COFFIN

A lead lined coffin is required in most repatriation cases and the body may need to be wrapped in specific packaging, and you may wish to have a covering of a religious nature if you want that to be the case.

We would recommend that you check with your Consulate, Embassy or High Commission to ensure that you meet the legal requirements.

There are independent and private repatriation companies that can do this for you as they will know all the rules and legal requirements and they can offer a comprehensive service for repatriation, at a price, so that the stress sis reduced.

 

WHAT TO DO WHEN SOMEONE DIES IN SPAIN

If you have a Funeral Plan, call the Funeral Plan provider, they will have a 24hr helpline, and they will make all the arrangements for the proper team to attend.

DO NOT sign anything unless you know what you are signing. When the police, ambulance or doctor turns up they may stuff a load of papers under your nose to sign and say it is standard. KNOW WHAT YOU ARE SIGNING. Often the doctor or whoever turns up at the scene will be associated with a mortuary or funeral home in Spain and by signing a document it authorizes them to elect to use that funeral home and mortuary, which may not be the one assigned to your funeral plan, If you have one.

This can cause additional expense in recovering and transporting the body from that funeral home or mortuary.

 

REGISTERING A DEATH IN SPAIN

If you have a funeral plan in Spain, everything will be taken care of, and you won’t have to worry about a thing, as you have pre-planned the process.

If you don’t have a funeral plan, you should call your local doctor and inform them of the death. The doctor will then decide if the doctor is to visit or an ambulance and/or police to attend.

If the deceased suffered from any infectious diseases such as HIV or Covid, you would need to let them know so that they can take the necessary precautions.

The funeral director will register the death as is required by law with the local Spanish Civil Registry, who will then issue the death certificate in Spanish, this will not show the cause of death.

You can ask the funeral director for an international multilingual standard death certificate, but it will cost you extra for the translation.

You can also register the death with the Overseas Registration Unit in the U.K and buy a U.K style death certificate. You do not need to register the death in the U.K as the local death certificate can be used for. Most purposes including probate

 

POST-MORTEMS IN SPAIN

A post-mortem literally means after death and is a procedure to examine the body to determine the cause of death. This is not common in Spain and is usually carried out by a forensic doctor and tissue samples and organs may be removed and kept for testing without the consent of the next of kin, and you may not be advised that this has been done.

You can request a copy of the post mortem from the local court dealing with the death. Once the post-mortem is complete the body will be released for burial or cremation.

 

CANCELLING A PASSPORT

It is always advisable to cancel the passport of the deceased to avoid any attempts at identity theft. You will need to do this through Her Majesty´s Passport Office by completing form D1.

 

CAN I DONATE MY BODY TO SCIENCE IN SPAIN?

Donating your body to science can help with training for a wide variety of doctors and trainees in the medical industry. It was once considered a pauper grave and the cheapest way to handle a the death of a loved one when money may have been an issue. Today it is more difficult to do so, as there are many bodies donated to science. The best way to find out if this can be done is to contact a faculty of medicine at the local hospital or talk to your doctor.