Flying Coffins Home
A guest article by Dr. Helen Baumer
How do you send ashes or a coffin back to your home country?
Repatriating urns
Families who carry the urn containing their loved one’s ashes with them in an aircraft cabin require a cremation certificate issued by a Swiss crematorium (“Kremationsbescheinigung”). This may be free of charge, as in Zurich, or be subject to a charge.
In addition, it is advisable to carry the passport or ID document of the deceased.
An international death certificate is not usually required. However, Egli funeral directors in Berne have a great deal of experience in this area and have often been surprised by unexpected requirements in other countries. Their policy is therefore to supply more documentation than expected, rather than less, and they recommend that families also carry a certificate of confirmation that the death has been reported (“Bestätigung der Anmeldung eines Todesfalls”), which is issued by the local authority. This document should bear an official stamp stating that it is not an official death certificate.
Levin Ulmann from Gerber Lindau in the canton of Zurich adds that it is generally advisable to check with the Embassy responsible for the deceased person, to see whether any other additional documentation may be required. The US Embassy has a “Special Consular Services Team” which supports families in this area.
Families also need to be sure that the urn can be screened by the airport security system and that it is not breakable. For this reason, Beat Burkhard from Egli Berne recommends a copper urn and advises against a clay urn, which could break. “Families can take the copper urn with them in the cabin, wrapped in a cloth,” he says. Levin Ulmann from Gerber Lindau funeral home recommends the use of a wooden urn.
It is possible to send urns home unaccompanied. Some countries, such as Sri Lanka, specify that they be sent with named carriers, such as DHL. These carriers often have their own additional requirements regarding documentation.
Gerber Lindau offers a service whereby one of its employees will accompany the urn to its destination. “This is often cheaper than a courier,” says Levin Ulmann, “and gives families a feeling of security”.
Repatriating coffins
If, on the other hand, you are repatriating your loved one in a coffin, the procedure can be very time-consuming and is often expensive. The fact that there are no standardised regulations at the international level can often give rise to confusion and bureaucracy. In addition, documentation and procedures differ from one Swiss canton to another.
While repatriation of urns does not necessarily require funeral directors, in the case of coffins they are always involved, as are, in most cases, national embassies.
Levin Ulmann estimates that repatriation of coffins can take up to a maximum of 15 days, with more distant destinations like India or Sri Lanka taking longer. Delays can occur in cases where an autopsy is required, or where arrangements at the Swiss or destination airport are held up by time differences or weekends. At Egli Berne, the turnaround time for a coffin repatriation is between 2-4 days and a maximum of a week. “Generally, we can process repatriations very quickly,” says Beat Burkhard. “If the family comes in on a Monday, the coffin can be in the aircraft on Wednesday.”
Overall repatriation procedures cost between CHF 4,000 and CHF 10,000, according to Beat Burkhard. The actual figure depends on a number of factors including the distance involved and the weight of the deceased. Levin Ulmann agrees they can cost up to CHF 10,000, with expensive services such as embalming or translations adding considerably to the overall cost.
Coffins transported to other countries must be lined with zinc, with an airtight seal. In Zurich, the district medical officer must be present when the coffin is sealed. In Lucerne, the medical officer must provide a protocol relating to the sealing of the coffin. If the coffin travels by air, it also requires a pressure compensation valve.
Embalming is required in almost all countries that are not members of the Schengen Agreement, according to Levin Ulmann. This procedure is carried out by cantonal forensic medicine institutes or by one of the few independent thanatologists in Switzerland. It can take up to two to three days.
Repatriated coffins must be accompanied by appropriate documentation. All coffins require a corpse transport permit or “Laisser passer for a corpse” (“Leichenpass”). In Berne this is called a “Leichenpass und Einsargungszeugnis”, a single document which combines the “Laisser passer” and a certification that coffining procedures, including the sealing protocol, have been completed.
Egli Lucerne also lists the following documentation: Passport or identity card, medical confirmation of death certificate (“Todesbescheinigung”) with a brief medical diagnosis, international death certificate obtained from the local civil registry, burial authorisation (“Bestattungsbewilligung”) from the local authority at the place of death, details of funeral directors handling the case in both Switzerland and at the destination.
As not all countries require a death certificate, Beat Burkhard at Egli Berne also suggests providing a certificate of confirmation that the death has been reported (“Bestätigung der Anmeldung eines Todesfalls”), issued by the local authority.
Some countries require that the corpse transport permit (“Laisser passer”) bear the certified signature, or “Apostille”, of a district medical officer.
In addition, some countries require additional documents issued by their embassy. These include the USA, Greece, India and Sri Lanka.
Moreover, a number of countries require documentation from a doctor that the deceased was free of any infectious illness (“ärztliches Unbedenklichkeitszeugnis”). Provisions in this area change constantly and were particularly stringent during the Covid period.
Once all the documentation has finally been organised, a flight can be booked through a transport company. The coffin is issued with an Airway Bill, and the coffin may travel with a freight aircraft or with a passenger airline that transports coffins. The Airway Bill is then given to the funeral director in the destination country, who takes over responsibility for transport to the final location where your friends and family can finally hold a dignified and appropriate funeral for you.
Dr. Helen Baumer (www.baumer-trauerfeiern.ch) is a UK and Swiss qualified funeral celebrant. As a native English speaker, she crafts and leads independent personalised funerals for international families throughout German-speaking Switzerland. If you are interested in finding out more about end-of-life related matters, you are invited to visit her website.
For the details set out here, Helen Baumer would like to express her gratitude to Levin Ulmann, from Gerber Lindau funeral directors in Zurich, and Beat Burkhard, from Egli funeral directors in Berne, for all their extremely useful information on this subject.