All services / Retirement & health care
When someone dies in Thailand
เมื่อมีคนเสียชีวิตในไทย
When someone dies in Thailand, the family needs the death registered, papers for the embassy, and a funeral home for a cremation or the flight home.
Today's price ฿15,000
What you get
- When someone dies in Thailand฿15,000We register the death, prepare embassy papers, and arrange cremation or sending the body to your home country with a funeral home. You pay the funeral home, embassy and translation fees at the price we pay.
How it goes
- We register the death.Hongdam and the district office (amphur) · First
- We prepare the embassy papers.Hongdam and the embassy · After registration
- We arrange a cremation or repatriation with a funeral home.Hongdam and the funeral home · After the papers
- We register the death.Hongdam and the district office (amphur) · First
- We prepare the embassy papers.Hongdam and the embassy · After registration
- We arrange a cremation or repatriation with a funeral home.Hongdam and the funeral home · After the papers
Useful facts
- A death outside a hospital is reported to the local police as soon as possible. The police report is needed to register the death at the district office (amphur). gov.uk
- A hospital's confirmation of death is not an official death certificate. The amphur writes the certificate in Thai and issues one original to the person who reports the death. gov.uk
- After a death outside a hospital or by accident, the police investigate and may ask for an autopsy. The Australian Embassy says the autopsy report can take at least 6 to 8 weeks. thailand.embassy.gov.au
- The German Embassy in Bangkok says preparing the flight home for a body or an urn takes about 1 to 3 weeks, and that cremation is usual in Thailand for cultural reasons. bangkok.diplo.de
- The Australian Embassy gives next of kin a letter to release the remains from the hospital and cancels the passport. It does not investigate deaths, and it does not provide or certify translations. thailand.embassy.gov.au
What others charge
| Cremation in Thailand, ashes released (three funeral firms on the Australian Embassy's list, Bangkok estimates of January 2026; regional areas may cost more) | ฿31,000–41,000 (one firm adds 7% VAT) thailand.embassy.gov.au |
|---|---|
| Cremation in Thailand, ashes flown to Australia | ฿35,815–55,000 thailand.embassy.gov.au |
| Body flown to Australia | ฿100,000–125,000 thailand.embassy.gov.au |
| Hongdam · When someone dies in Thailand | ฿15,000 |
What people ask
What happens first when someone dies in Thailand?
A hospital usually gives the family a notice of death. The family registers the death and receives the certificate at the district office (amphur or tedsaban). After a death outside a hospital or by accident, the police investigate and may ask for an autopsy. The Australian Embassy suggests the family engage a funeral director. thailand.embassy.gov.au
How much does it cost to send a body home from Thailand?
Three funeral firms on the Australian Embassy's list estimate ฿100,000 to ฿125,000 to fly a body to Australia, against ฿31,000 to ฿41,000 for a cremation in Thailand with the ashes released. The figures date from January 2026. thailand.embassy.gov.au
Does insurance pay for sending a body home?
The German Embassy says that if the person was insured for a death abroad, the insurer pays, under its terms, either for a burial in Thailand or for the return of the body or urn, and appoints a funeral firm. The family tells the insurer which it wants. Without cover, the family contacts a funeral firm itself and usually pays the costs. bangkok.diplo.de
How long does it take to send a body home?
The German Embassy puts the preparation at about 1 to 3 weeks. It says the funeral at home is set only after the funeral firms in Thailand and in Germany have confirmed the transfer dates. bangkok.diplo.de
Is the Thai death certificate in English?
No. The amphur writes it in Thai and issues one original to the person who reports the death. For use in the UK it needs translating, and the UK government page suggests certification by the Thai Ministry of Foreign Affairs. gov.uk
Also from Hongdam
Document legalised
฿1,500 / document
We take your document to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for an official seal, or to a notary (who certifies papers), and bring it back.
Document translation
from ฿500
Translation between Thai, English, Burmese and Chinese, for passports, contracts and certificates.
A written plan for a hard problem in Thailand
฿2,000
Bank, visa, property or a death in the family: we write down the steps.
Interpreter
from ฿400
By phone or video, or with you in Chiang Rai or Chiang Mai at an immigration office, hospital or bank.
Merit (Buddhist good deeds) for someone who died
฿3,000
On the 7th, 50th or 100th day after the death: monks invited, photos sent.
Web page for a wedding, a monk ordination or a memorial
from ฿5,000
Photos, video, times and a map, to share on LINE.
Elsewhere
Small print
Prices here move with demand: when most of a month's places are taken, the price goes up a step; when few are, it comes down a step.
Sources read 2026-10-24.