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Documents required for the cremation of a body

  • Medical certificate of death
  • Cremation affidavit (Law 1599/1986, Article 8)
  • Certificate of embalming signed by a medical examiner and issued by the Region of Crete, stating that the body does not contain electronic devices or any other metallic implants
  • In case the death occurs in a place where it is not obligatory to embalm the body for transportation, a medical examiner’s certificate is required
  • Cremation permit (issued by the register office)

Documents required for the cremation of bones

  • Certificate of death issued by the Register Office.
  • Certificate of disinfection (for the Region of Crete).
  • Permission for the transport of bones issued by the competent Department of Health.
  • Cremation Affidavit (Law 1599/1986, Article 8).

Cremations

Since March 15, 2006, Greece, as all other members states of the EU, permits cremations, satisfying a large portion of the population. According to the presidential decree all citizens of the Greek state have the option to be cremated, regardless of their religious affiliation.

In order to be cremated the deceased person has to make a previous statement, without conditions and provisos, declaring his/her wish to be cremated. Otherwise, an affidavit can be made by up to fourth-degree blood relatives or relatives-in-law.

Cremation of bones

In time, we will all face the tragic situation to have to exhume the bones of our loved ones. Nowadays, families have the option to cremate the bones rather than place the bones in a reliquary and keep them in a cemetery ossuary. By cremating the bones, the family can take the ashes and manage them as they wish. This procedure takes 1.5-2 hours.

The cremation option has significant advantages, such as:

  • The family members are spared from the devastating exhumation experience.
  • Money is saved by avoiding to build a grave, which will be destroyed three years after the burial.
  • Money is saved by avoiding to pay longtime fees for keeping the bones in an ossuary.
  • Better management of the land, especially in urban centers where there is lack of space in cemeteries.
  • Environmental protection, because with the cremation process the ground and the ground water are not affected. At the same time the cremations take place in establishments which operate under strict European and Greek environmental regulations.
  • Family and friends are spared from significant emotional and financial burden.
  • Plenty of options in regard to memorial services or remembrance ceremonies.
  • Cremations are not necessarily related to religious affiliation. Many Greek celebrities as well as ordinary people have chosen to be cremated.

Useful information

  • Our Funeral Home carries out the entire cremation process with consistency, efficiency and great respect.
  • Our Funeral Home offers cremation services (of bodies and bones after exhumation) in collaboration with the Cremation Center in Ritsona Euboea since September 2019. The family can attend the cremation process.
  • The Cremation Center provides a range of options, such as: Organization of final farewells, coffee/meals, scattering and storing of ashes. There are also available urns and memorial jewelry. You can find more information about the crematorium at the link www.cremservices.gr
  • The family or the relatives of the deceased should contact the Funeral Home, which will carry out the cremation process in collaboration with the crematorium.
  • The cremation expenses are partly covered by the insurance funds, as applies for the funeral expenses.
  • Every natural person can define before a public notary the type of his/her funeral, his/her burial or cremation place, the management of his/her ashes and the persons who will fulfill his/her wishes (Law 344/1976, Article 35A).
  • The cremation takes 2-3 hours.
  • According to the law it is required to register the death within 60 hours after its occurrence at the competent register office, in case this time frame passes the body cannot be cremated.

The process for cremating a body in Greece includes the following:

  • A coffin with the appropriate requirements for cremation
  • Storage of the deceased person in our facilities without charge for as long as it takes to cremate his/her body
  • The required transportations
  • The required permits
  • The metallic urn (standard)
  • Optionally you can choose a memento or an urn of your choice

In any case, you have always the option to organize a civil funeral or a memorial service of your loved one at the designated room of our Funeral Home.

Planning the cremation

Choosing cremation as a last wish is a personal and conscious decision, which depends on every person’s belief system. For some people it is of great importance to pre-plan the details of their “final curtain”. They want to plan their death in the same manner they planned their life.

For other people it is important to relief their relatives emotionally as well as financially, considering the unknown situation they may find themselves at the time of their loved one’s death.

Our Funeral Home offers the opportunity to take care of your own cremation planning and pre-buy cremation and ash scattering services. This practice is common in the entire world, among others in Europe, USA, Canada, Australia, etc., where crematoriums operate for decades.

The purpose of offering this service is to avoid burden the family with procedural and financial issues at a very emotional time, while simultaneously the last wish of the deceased is fulfilled. The pre-purchase of the package includes services offered by our Funeral Home and the crematorium fees (coffin, transfer, flower arrangement, etc.), in order to inform us about your choices we will need to contact you. In that way you will feel confident that your every wish and decision will be respected and fulfilled.

Also, as it happens in Europe and America, the Cremation Center in Ritsona offers the possibility of livestreaming from the ceremony hall, in order that friends and family who live abroad or not in the vicinity of the crematorium can attend from afar.

General procedure

1st way:

  • You will have to fill out an affidavit declaring your decision to be cremated and the way you would like your ashes to be dealt with (Law 4277/2014, Article 49). In the affidavit you will appoint the person who will execute your wish (recipient). Click here Cremation Affidavit-Deceased for an affidavit model.
  • The recipient fills out an affidavit accepting the responsibility to execute your wish. Click here Cremation Affidavit-Recipient for an affidavit model. You can issue an affidavit electronically, having your signature verified via the webpage dilosi.services.gov.gr/create/q/templates

2nd way:

  • You can visit a notary public of your choice and sign a notarial act declaring your decision to be cremated and the way you would like your ashes to be dealt with (Law 344/1976, Article 35A). In the act you will appoint the person who will execute your wish (recipient). Click here CREMATION AFFIDAVIT before a public notary for a notarial act sample.