If you are dealing with the death of a child, multiple deaths, a suspicious death or a case of murder or manslaughter, call the British High Commission in Barbados +1 246 430 7800.

Contacting the travel insurance company

If the person who died had insurance, contact their insurance company as soon as possible. Insurance providers may help to cover the cost of repatriation. Repatriation is the process of bringing the body home. Insurance providers may also help with medical, legal, interpretation and translation fees.

If the person who died had insurance, the insurance company will appoint a funeral director both locally and in the UK.

What to do if the person who died didn’t have insurance

If you are not sure whether the person who died had insurance, check with their bank, credit card company or employer.

If the person who died did not have insurance, a relative or a formally appointed representative will usually have to appoint a funeral director and be responsible for all costs. The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.

The FCDO cannot help with any costs. In some cases, funeral directors and lawyers may provide services on a pro bono basis. Pro bono work is done for free or for a reduced cost, depending on your circumstances. This is decided on a case by case basis.

Charities and organisations that offer support

Some UK-based charities and organisations may be able to provide help and information to people affected by a death abroad. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based charities and organisations.

Registering the death and getting a death certificate

You must register the death in the country where the person died. In St Vincent and the Grenadines deaths are registered at a Civil Registry. You can do this at the main office in Kingstown or in the registration district in which the death occurred.

If you appoint a local funeral director to register the death on your behalf, you will also need to give them a ‘letter of authorisation’ stating that you authorise them to act on your behalf. The funeral director will tell you what the letter needs to include.

You will need a medical certificate signed by the doctor who attended the person who died and a medical warrant issued by a magistrate to register the death. If a post-mortem is carried out, you will also need a Warrant to Bury from the magistrate.

Local government operating hours are Monday to Friday 8am to 4pm. You can get copies of the death certificate. It usually takes 2 days for copies to be issued.

You do not need to register the death in the UK. The local death certificate can usually be used in the UK for most purposes, including probate.

If you wish, you can register the death with the Overseas Registration Unit (ORU). You can buy a UK-style death certificate, known as a Consular Death Registration certificate. The ORU will send a record to the General Register Office within 12 months.

If the person who died suffered from an infectious condition, such as hepatitis or HIV, you must tell the local authorities, so they can take precautions against infection.

Next of kin

The next of kin for the person who died needs to carry out these legal procedures. In St Vincent and the Grenadines the next of kin is defined as their married partner or closest living blood relative.

Same-sex partners, whether married or not, are not recognised as next of kin under the law of St Vincent and the Grenadines.

If you are not the next of kin, you may need authorisation from that person to register the death or carry out other legal procedures.

Mortuary facilities

Mortuary facilities are of a similar standard to the UK. Cold storage facilities are available in Kingstown and across the Grenadines.

In the Kingstown morgue, there is no fee for storing a body. Elsewhere in the Grenadines, there is a fee of EC$100 a day.

Dealing with a local post-mortem

Post-mortems are usually performed when the cause of death is unknown, unnatural, sudden or violent. Post-mortems are carried out by forensic doctors appointed by the court. Cultural or religious sensitivities may not be taken into account. The FCDO cannot stop or interfere with the process.

During a post-mortem, small tissue samples and organs may be removed and retained for testing without the consent of the family. You will not automatically be told if this happens.

If a post-mortem was carried out in St Vincent and the Grenadines, you can ask for a copy of the report by contacting one of the following:

• your local UK coroner if you bring the body back to the UK
• the British High Commission in KingstownBridgetown.
• the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office in the UK

If you bring the body back to the UK, the UK coroner will automatically assume responsibility and open an inquest. The coroner can investigate the cause of death,death and help with translation and interpretation of any medical findings.

Bringing the body home

If the person who died had insurance, find out if their insurance provider can help cover the cost of repatriation. Repatriation is the process of bringing the body home. If so, they will make all the necessary arrangements.

If the person who died is not covered by insurance, you will need to appoint an international funeral director yourself.

Finding an international funeral director

A relative or a formally appointed representative must appoint a UK-based international funeral director for the person who died to be repatriated to the UK. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.

Local funeral directors will work with UK-based international funeral directors to meet all the necessary requirements both locally and in the UK. This includes providing documents such as a local civil registry death certificate, a certificate of embalming and a certificate giving permission to transfer the remains to the UK.

Advice and financial assistance for repatriation

There are UK organisations and charities that may be able to offer assistance with repatriation.

Requesting a post-mortem in the UK

If you want to have a post-mortem in the UK after the body has been repatriated, you can request one from a UK coroner. The coroner will then decide if a post-mortem is needed. If you want the person who died to be cremated, you need to apply for a certificate from the coroner (form ‘Cremation 6’).

Bringing the ashes home

If you choose local cremation and wish to take the ashes back to the UK yourself, you can usually do this. Check with your airline about specific restrictions or requirements, for example whether you can carry the ashes as hand luggage. To leave St Vincent and the Grenadines with human ashes you will need to show:

• the death certificate
• the certificate of cremation

Depending on the circumstances of the death, you may also need:

• Warrant of burial (in the case of a sudden death or murder)
• Embalmer certificate
• Transit document from Ministry of Health
• Declaration document from the Ministry of Health
• Identification for the person who died (for example, their passport)

You will also need to fill in a standard customs form when you arrive in the UK.

If it is not possible for you to transport the ashes yourself, a funeral director will be able to make the necessary arrangements. The FCDO provides a list of UK-based international funeral directors.

Burying or cremating the body locally

To have a local burial or cremation, a relative or a formally appointed representative needs to appoint a local funeral director.

The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking funeral directors in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

The funeral director will be able to explain the local process.

There are no crematoriums on St Vincent and the Grenadines. You will need to ask a funeral director to transport the body to a neighbouring island for a cremation.

There are crematoriums in:

• Grenada - La Qua Brothers Funeral Home
• Barbados - Coral Ridge Memorial Gardens
• St. Kitts - Liamuiga Funeral Home and Crematory
• St. Lucia - Rambally’s Funeral Parlour

You will need the following documents for a burial, cremation and repatriation:

• a warrant of burial
• embalmer certificate
• death certificate
• transit documents

If you cannot afford to pay for a funeral, contact the Ministry of National Mobilisation and Social Development. The local government may be able to organise a ‘pauper’s funeral’ for the person who died.

If a local burial or cremation takes place, there will not be a coroner’s inquest carried out in the UK.

Retrieving belongings

Personal belongings found on the person who died at the time of death are given to the police if the family is not present.

If you choose to repatriate the body, instruct the local funeral director to collect all personal belongings from the police or court and ship them together with the body.

If there is an investigation into the death, clothing may be retained as evidence and will not be returned until the court case is finished.

The FCDO cannot help with the cost of returning personal belongings to the family.

Finding a lawyer

You can apply to appoint a lawyer in certain circumstances, such as a suspicious death. The FCDO provides a list of English-speaking lawyers in St Vincent and the Grenadines.

Cancelling a passport

To avoid identity fraud, the passport of the person who died should be cancelled with His Majesty’s Passport Office (HMPO). To do this, you need to complete a D1 form.

If you plan to repatriate the person who died to the UK, you may need their passport to do this. In these circumstances, you should cancel the passport after they have been repatriated.

Checking you have done everything you need to do in the UK

Check this step-by-step guide for when someone dies to make sure you have done everything you need to do in the UK. You can find information on:

• how to tell the government about the death
• UK pensions and benefits
• dealing with the estate of the person who died