How To Apply For Duplicate Death Certificate?,Copy of Death Certificate

The need for Death Certificate:

The Government issues a Death Certificate of the deceased to the nearest relatives stating the date, cause and fact of death. One need to register a death so that there is proof of death to relieve the individual from any legal, social and official business, to enable settlement of insurance, property inheritance and other benefits.

Within 21 days it is mandatory to register the death of a person with the concerned State/UT Government under the law. The Registrar General in India of the Government is at the centre which has provided a well defines system for registering deaths and at the periphery is the Chief Registrars in the State running through district, village and town registrars.

Process to get a copy of Death Certificate:

The death certificates are filed in the country, state, city or the local records office and not with the federal government. To get the address of the office in the state/area in which a death has occurred one need to contact the National Centre for Health Statistics and then visit or write to the appropriate vital statistics office.

To get a death certificate one need to provide require information of the deceased in the application form and pay for the number of required copies. The cost of the death certificate varies from location to location.

If a death occurred outside the country of birth then one need to contact the nearest embassy or consulate in which death occurred.

Copy of Death Certificate

A copy of Death Certificate is required to relieve a person from societal, legal and official commitments after his or her death. In case of property settlement and authorization of the family to collect insurance amount, provident fund and other benefits, the family members have to submit the copy of Death Certificate of the concerned person. In case of a murder or suspicious death, family members can get accurate information on death by seeing the copy of Death Certificate.
To get the Death Certificate, the relatives have to register the death first. 

Legal Framework for Death Certificate in India:

In India, all the deaths should be registered with concerned state or Union Territory Government within 21 days of death according to Registration of Births & Deaths Act, 1969. A proficient system is available with the Registrar General, India at central level and the Chief Registrars in States. Similarly, District Registrars in the village and town registrars at the periphery are also equipped with such a system.

Following persons can report and register the death:

• The head of the family if the person dies inside the house
• The medical in-charge if the person dies in a hospital
• The jail in-charge if the death occurs in a jail
• The village head or in-charge of the local police station if the dead body is found deserted in that area
The failure of a doctor to immediately submit the necessary form to the government to trigger issuance of the death certificate is sometimes a crime and cause for loss of one's license to practice.
Registration of the death is essential before applying for the Death Certificate. The official procedures have to be completed with the local authorities within 21 days of the death. Prescribed form provided by the registrar has to be filled in. After completion of verification the certificate is issued.

If the death has not been reported within 21 days of the occurrence, permission from the Registrar or Area Magistrate is required and a fee has to be deposited for late registration. The application form can made available from the local authority of the area or the Registrar maintaining the Register of Deaths. 

Following details are necessary to obtain the Copy of Death Certificate:

• Birth Certificate
• An affidavit stating the date and time of the death
• A copy of ration card
• Specified fee in the form of court fee stamps