Registration of a Death from Natural Causes

How to Register

Under the Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance, you need to register a death from natural causes within 24 hours. In most cases, the registered medical practitioner who attended the deceased person during his or her last illness will sign and issue a Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death (Form 18). You will need to take it to the death registry for registration of the death.

Where to Register

Deaths from natural causes can be registered on weekdays and Saturday mornings (except General Holidays) at Hong Kong Island Deaths Registry or Kowloon Deaths Registry. On Sundays and General Holidays, you can approach the Births and Deaths General Register Office from 10 am to 12:30 pm for service. Death registration services for natural deaths are also available in some designated police stations in the New Territories such as Cheung Chau and Mui Wo for deaths that occurred in the respective districts.

General Enquiries
Hotline: (852) 2824 6111
Fax: (852) 2877 7711
Email: enquiry@immd.gov.hkmailto:enquiry@immd.gov.hk

Supporting Documents

When applying for registering a death, you should supply originals of the following documents:

• Medical Certificate of the Cause of Death (Form 18), signed and issued by the registered medical practitioner who attended the deceased person during his or her last illness
• The deceased person’s Hong Kong identity card or travel document
  
• Your Hong Kong identity card or travel document

You are required to provide information on the deceased person's occupation, nationality, and marital status.

How Long Will the Processing Take

The registration of a death normally takes 30 minutes, and a certified copy of a death entry (commonly known as Certificate of Death) can usually be issued within another 10 minutes.

Application Fees

Registering a death does not incur a fee, but you will need to pay HK$140 for a certified copy of a death entry. If you had not applied for a certified copy of a death entry at the time of the death registration but need to get one afterwards, you may need to apply for a search of death records first and you will have to pay a search fee (HK$140 for Particular Search and HK$680 for General Search).