We also provide a service to help you tell the people who need to know about the death, such as government departments and local council services. You only need to Tell Us Once and we can contact these organisations on your behalf.

How can I make an appointment?

Making an appointment will reduce the waiting time and make sure you are visiting the right office. Before you make your appointment, you need to look at the information pages on Tell Us Once. If you take up this service, an extra 10 minutes will be added to your appointment time.

	Book an appointment to register a death online Use our online booking system to make an appointment quickly and easily 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Before booking online, please read the information below, which includes help for the online booking system if you need it.

You can also make an appointment by calling or e-mailing any of our registration offices. We will check the availability of appointments for you and offer an alternative if necessary. Contact details and opening times are provided below.

When do I register a death?

The death must normally be registered within five days unless the coroner is conducting an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death. If the coroner is involved, you can find more information on the coroners - sudden death investigations page.

Where do I register a death?

When someone dies, you are required by law, to register the death in the registration district where it occurred and this should be completed within five days of the death.

If the person died in North Yorkshire, you may visit any registration office in North Yorkshire to register the death.

You can also visit any registration office in England and Wales to give details of the death and these will be passed to the appropriate office. So, if the death occurred outside North Yorkshire e.g. in the City of York or in Leeds, you can make what is known as a 'declaration' of the death at one of our offices. But please note that this may result in a short delay in receiving any death certificates required to organise a funeral; these will be issued by the registrar in the area where the death occurred, once they have received the information from us and you have paid for the certificates.

All North Yorkshire registration offices operate an appointments system.

The registration itself takes about 30 minutes and is free.

How can you help me tell other people who need to know about the death?

When you register a death you can also choose to let us inform government departments and local council services through a service called Tell Us Once. It means that you don't need to tell lots of different people the same information at this difficult time; we can do some of that for you instead.

Who may register a death?

There are certain people allowed by law to register a death. These include:

• A relative;
• Someone who was present when the person died;
• The person responsible for arranging the funeral (not the funeral director); or
• A responsible person from the hospital or home where the person died.

If you are unsure whether you can register the death, the registrar will advise you when you make the appointment.

What information will I need to bring with me?

When you register the death, you will need to bring a Medical Certificate of Cause of Death issued by a doctor. If the death has been referred to the Coroner, the Coroner's Officer will advise you.

It is useful to have the birth certificate or passport of the deceased with you, but it is not essential. You must however be able to give the date and place of birth of the person who died, if at all possible. If you have the medical card showing the person's NHS number, please bring that with you.

If the person who died had a blue badge, concessionary bus pass or a library card, please bring them with you so that the registrar may return them on your behalf.

Please also see Tell Us Once page about how we can help you inform other organisations.

What will I need to know about the person who has died?

The registrar will see you in private to ask for details about the person who has died.  The information detailed below will be required.

It is very important that the information registered is accurate. The register entry is a legal record which is difficult to correct at a later date. You should check spellings and dates carefully when asked to do so by the registrar.

You will need to know:

• The place and date of death;
• The full name of the person who has died. This should be the name they used at the time of their death;
• Any other names they may have been known as; for example they may have changed their name by deed poll;
• Their date and place of birth (town and county if possible);
• What their job was and whether they were retired; and
• Their usual address.

If the person who has died was married, in a civil partnership or widowed you will also need to know:

• What a woman's surname was before she was first married; and
• The full name and occupation of the wife, husband or civil partner.

You will also be asked to give your full address and state your relationship to the person who died.

What happens after I have registered a death?

After you have registered a death the registrar will give you a green form to give to the funeral director (unless the Coroner has already issued one). If the deceased received a pension or allowance from public funds e.g. civil service or army, the registrar will issue and send the appropriate certificate of notification.

Copies of the death certificate

Registering a death is free; however there is a statutory fee payable for copies of the death certificate. You will need these when you are sorting out the finances of the person who has died. They need to be shown to organisations such as banks, building societies and insurance companies to gain access to accounts and funds.

Please ask for any extra certificates during the registration so that they can be given to you there and then. There is a small fee for copies of the death certificate.

Please note if you are making a death declaration in North Yorkshire, the certificates will be issued by a registrar in the area where the death occurred, once the North Yorkshire Registration Service has passed on the information to them and you have paid the fee for the certificates

Online mapping

You can find a range of information about the services we provide by using our online mapping.

	Related information from NHS Choices Dealing with loss Most people grieve when they lose someone important to them. Grieving can feel unbearable but it's a necessary process. For help and support with grief including dealing with the emotions involved and supporting children, see the Dealing with losspage from NHS Choices. Carers Direct - bereavement support When a person you look after dies, you may be not only losing a loved one, but as a carer you may be losing your sense of purpose when your caring role ends. For details of where you can turn to for help and support, see the Bereavement supportpage in the Carers Direct section of NHS Choices.