WHAT HAPPENS TO YOUR BODY IF YOU DIE IN THE PHILIPPINES

Written By Joe Gilbert

Introduction:

When a Filipino dies, the family has 48 hours and a stack of paperwork. When an expat dies, they get the same clock and a choice: cremate here and send the body home for about $3,000 or embalm the body and ship it home for about $8,000. Veterans have another couple of options. Let’s go over how it works for Filipinos and then talk about the options for expats.

PART ONE: WHEN A FILIPINO DIES

THE FIRST HOURS

In a hospital, the attending physician certifies the death. At home, a physician or barangay health officer pronounces the death, and the death should be reported to the police. Sudden, violent, or unattended deaths may go to law enforcement or a medico-legal officer before the body can be released. A medico-legal officer is a police forensic doctor. The Philippines has no coroner's office like the ones in most U.S. counties. A police forensic doctor normally conducts the post mortem, and results can take two to three weeks.

THE PAPERWORK CLOCK

No remains can be buried or cremated without a death certificate. Registration with the Local Civil Registrar is due within thirty days. The Local Civil Registrar is the city or town office that keeps birth, marriage, and death records. Unembalmed remains cannot stay unburied longer than 48 hours, unless an investigation or the health authority allows it.

WHO PAYS

The nearest kin pays for the burial. The order is the spouse, the descendants, the ascendants, then brothers and sisters. Descendants are children and grandchildren. Ascendants are parents and grandparents.

THE FIVE-YEAR LEASE

In many public cemeteries, the grave is a rental. Public cemetery burial normally carries a five-year contract. A five-year lease on an "apartment" tomb in Manila cost about ₱5,000 in 2021. When the family does not renew, the remains are dug up. They are exhumed and placed in a common grave and the space is reopened. A Manila North Cemetery administrator said bones in unpaid graves are transferred to other cemeteries or buried in mass graves. Families can avoid this if they buy a permanent lot or a family tomb. Some families choose cremation because it removes the lease requirement and is less expensive.

THE SSS FUNERAL BENEFIT The Social Security System, called SSS, is the Philippines government's social insurance program. The funeral benefit reimburses whoever paid for the funeral, depending on how much was paid into the system, reimbursement can range from ₱12,000 up to ₱60,000. If the deceased made no SSS contributions, there is usually no funeral benefit. Check whether your loved one was an SSS member.

PART TWO: WHEN AN EXPAT DIES

The same laws apply. Now add the complications. REPORT THE DEATH

The Embassy issues a Consular Report of Death Abroad based on the Philippine death certificate. It is generally used to settle the estate, and issuance can take four to six months.

YOU DO NOT HAVE TO SHIP YOUR BODY HOME

Many expats assume the body must go back to the United States. It does not. The Embassy says it can help families arrange return of remains to the United States, or burial or cremation in the Philippines.

Your family has up to six choices:

  1. Cremate here.

  2. Bury here, Philippine cemetary

  3. Cremate here and ship the ashes.

  4. Ship the body.

Veterans possibly have two more options:

  • Burial at Clark

  • Burial at sea

Cremation is permitted by local law with the consent of the decedent's relatives. Most crematoriums are in Metro Manila, with a few in other major cities and provinces. A cremation permit must be obtained from the City Health Office.

Your written wishes may not be enough. Crematories often still require the next of kin's consent, even when the deceased left written instructions. Best advice is to see a Philippine attorney.

EMBALMING VERSUS CREMATION: THE COSTS

Remains must be embalmed or cremated before return to the United States. Cremated remains are the cheaper option to repatriate.

The Embassy's estimates for the Manila area:

  • Cremation and disposition of ashes in Manila (including a wake and viewing period): about $2,500

  • Embalming "preparation" and burial in Manila: about $2,500

  • Cremation and air shipment of ashes to the U.S.: about $3,000

  • Embalming and air shipment of the body to the U.S.: about $8,000

Shipping a body costs about $5,000 more than shipping ashes.

You will still have US costs for the mortuary. You can’t send yourself to your mom’s house.

IF YOUR FAMILY SHIPS Your Body HOME

The Embassy advises hiring a funeral home in the United States if the remains will be returned for burial. Someone must receive the shipment. The mortuary certificate application requires consignee information and an airway bill number. The consignee is the person or company named to receive the shipment.

Four documents are generally required: a consular mortuary certificate, the local death certificate, an affidavit from a local funeral director, and a transit permit. No U.S. government funds are available. The family pays.

WHERE A VETERAN CAN BE BURIED HERE

There is no Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) national cemetery in the Philippines. VA national cemeteries are in 42 states and Puerto Rico.

Two American cemeteries here are run by the American Battle Monuments Commission, called ABMC. ABMC is a U.S. federal agency that Congress created in 1923. It operates and maintains American military cemeteries and memorials on foreign soil.

Manila American Cemetery was closed to new burials in 1956.

Clark Veterans Cemetery is still open to new burials of qualified veterans. Families must present the veteran's honorable discharge or retirement papers and other required documents. The main discharge paper is the DD Form 214. A veterans' post page lists requirements for both casket burial and cremated remains.

Contact ABMC for more information. See links below.

BURIAL AT SEA FOR Veterans

The Navy performs burial at sea on deployed vessels. Families cannot attend. The program is free and covers honorably discharged veterans of any branch. The remains must reach a Burial at Sea Coordinator at a port where they are handed to the Navy, and the average wait is 12 to 18 months. The family pays to get the remains there. Your family has to start the request and get your remains to the Navy.

WHO DECIDES

Next of kin normally control the disposition of remains, sometime against the deceased's lawful wishes. The information I’ve found is conflicting, so do your homework, and contact an attorney. At the minimum, write your wishes down and get your closest relatives to agree. Remember, COST will be a factor for your family.

WHAT TO DO THIS MONTH

For expats:

  1. Decide what you want: cremation here, burial here, Clark, ashes home, or burial at sea.

  2. Write it down, and get your closest relatives to agree to it.

  3. If you have a partner you never married, see a Philippine attorney about her authority.

  4. Keep a folder with passport copies, DD 214, embassy contact, and funeral home contact.

  5. Set aside money or arrange insurance. The U.S. government will not pay.

  6. See a Philippine attorney about your will.

For Filipino families:

  1. Get the cemetery lease terms in writing.

  2. Price a permanent lot, a family tomb, and cremation side by side.

  3. Confirm whether the deceased was an SSS member, and keep every receipt.

SUMMARY

A death here starts a 48-hour clock, a stack of paperwork, and a bill. A grave here in public cemeteries is rented for five years at a time. For expats, nothing requires the body to go home. Cremation and shipping home costs about $3,000, and shipping a body costs about $8,000. Your written wishes need your family's agreement behind them. Planning now protects the people you love.

Good decisions are made in advance and acted on in the moment.

Best,

Joe

Citations

Joe Gilbert
Next

Philippines Government Says Don't Panic About El Niño. What The News Says?