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ISSUANCE OF A CONSULAR MORTUARY CERTIFICATE TO TRANSPORT THE REMAINS OF A PHILIPPINE NATIONAL TO THE PHILIPPINES

When a Filipino national dies abroad and the body will be transported back to the Philippines, health, transportation, and quarantine authorities of the country of death may require a consular mortuary certification to be issued by the Philippine consular official with jurisdiction over the place of death.

The consular mortuary certificate confirms essential information about the deceased Philippine citizen and at the same time attests that the casket contains only the human remains which were properly embalmed. In addition, this certification describes how the casket is marked and addressed to a receiving consignee, and when the information is available, provides the shipment date, time, port of departure and destination as well as the name of the carrier/means of transport, and schedule of arrival in the Philippines.

The following documents are required to be submitted in order to obtain a Philippine consular mortuary certificate:

  1. Report of Death issued by the Philippine Embassy/Consulate with jurisdiction over the place of death.

  2. Passport copy of the deceased Filipino or any valid identification document that shows proof of Philippine citizenship.

  3. Certification issued by the local health and/or civil authorities (with English translation if applicable) attesting that the remains were properly embalmed / cremated and that it is in a sanitary condition for international shipment, duly authenticated or apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of country of death.

  4. Certification of Non-Contagious Disease from local health / medical / civil authorities (with English translation if applicable) attesting that the remains do not pose an health risk or threat of contagious disease, duly authenticated or apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the country of death.

  5. Proof of funeral parlor arrangements / acceptance of consignee that will handle the remains upon arrival in the Philippines, with contact details and copies of identification documents, flight details and schedule as appropriate.

  6. Exit clearance / Transit Permit issued by local authorities of the origin country for shipment, if applicable.

SHIPMENT OF HUMAN REMAINS OF A FOREIGN NATIONAL TO THE PHILIPPINES

When a foreign national dies abroad and the body will be transported back to the Philippines for burial, airline companies or health, transportation, and quarantine authorities may require a Letter of Consent or Proof of Non-Objection to be issued by a Philippine consular official with jurisdiction over the place of death, to facilitate the shipment of human remains from the country of death to the Philippines.

Such a letter or non-objection document may be issued by a Philippine consular officer upon the submission by the requesting party / Filipino family member / next-of-kin of the following documents:

  1. Consular Mortuary Certificate issued by the consular officer of the country of citizenship of the deceased foreign national. This document must have an English translation if written in any other language.

  2. Passport copy of the deceased foreign national.

  3. Duly notarized letter of the Filipino family member/ surviving next-of-kin requesting for the issuance of such non-objection document and explaining the burial plans in the Philippines and providing proof of funeral arrangements to handle the remains once it arrives in the Philippines.

  4. Proof of family relations such as marriage contract, birth certificate, etc. establishing family ties of the deceased foreign national and the Filipino next-of-kin. If this is a foreign-sourced document, it must be duly authenticated / apostilled by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the issuing country, with English translation if applicable.

In case the Consular Mortuary Certificate is not available, the following documents can be substituted instead:

a.) Duly authenticated/apostilled Certificate of Non-Contagious Disease issued by the appropriate authorities of the country of death, attesting that the remains do not pose a health risk or threat of contagious disease. This document must have an English translation if written in any other language.

b.) Duly authenticated/apostilled Certificate issued by the appropriate authorities of the country of death, declaring that proper procedures were followed for mummification / embalming / cremation of the remains and sealing of the casket / urn for international transport. This document must have an English translation if written in any other language.

Additional Entry Requirements for the Shipment of Remains in the Philippines

In accordance with existing laws and regulations in the Philippines regarding the entry of human remains, “bodies of persons who have died from cholera, small-pox, leprosy, plague and anthrax, or any communicable disease shall be properly embalmed and placed in a hermetically sealed metallic casket which shall later be enclosed in a wooden coffin or case strongly made and securely screwed or nailed, and carefully disinfected”.

In the conveyance of a dead body, all coffins must have at least four (4) handles.

No articles or other materials accompanying the body of a person who died from any communicable disease, exposed to the infection will be allowed into the Philippines unless a certification of proper disinfection is issued by a qualified Health Officer at the port of entry.