🕊️ After a death in the family: what to do, by when, where

What to do: If the death happened in a hospital, ask for the medical certificate of cause of death and the death summary / discharge papers. Since the 2023 amendment of the Registration of Births and Deaths Act, a medical institution must send this certificate to the Registrar free of charge and give a copy to the nearest relative (s.10). For a death at home, the doctor who treated the person in the last illness is to issue it free. Keep the copy safe — the death certificate itself does not show the cause, and insurers often ask for it.

📍 Where: Hospital records / medical records desk, or the treating doctor.

📂 Papers usually asked: Patient ID / admission papers; your ID as a relative.

What to do: Hospitals usually report deaths that happen there; for a death at home, the head of the household or nearest relative informs the local Registrar. The normal period is fixed by State rules — 21 days in most States. Late? Between 21 and 30 days, a late fee applies; between 30 days and one year, written permission of the District Registrar is needed; after one year, an order of the District Magistrate / SDM / authorised Executive Magistrate (s.13). Registering on time is the simplest route.

📍 Where: Local Registrar — municipal body / nagar palika, or gram panchayat in villages; many States use crsorgi.gov.in or their own portal.

📂 Papers usually asked: MCCD or hospital papers, ID of the deceased and the informant, address proof.

What to do: After registration, the Registrar is to give the informant the certificate free of charge (s.12; electronic or paper). Banks, insurers, EPFO, the RTO, the revenue office and others may each keep a copy, so ask for several certified copies (fees for extra copies are set by State rules) and keep self-attested photocopies too. Check the name, age, date and address carefully — correcting a mistake later takes time.

📍 Where: Same Registrar office / State portal.

📂 Papers usually asked: Registration number / acknowledgement.

What to do: Give each bank a short written intimation of the death with a copy of the death certificate (or inform first and give the certificate later). Do not use the deceased's debit card, UPI, net-banking or signed cheques after the death — ask the bank how to handle standing instructions and EMIs instead. Note every account, FD, locker and joint account, and ask for the bank's deceased-claim form and document list.

📍 Where: Home branch of each bank (some banks also accept online intimation).

📂 Papers usually asked: Death certificate copy, passbook / account details, your ID.

What to do: Quietly collect originals in one safe place: any will, insurance policies, passbooks / FD receipts, property papers, vehicle RC, PAN, Aadhaar, loan papers, employer letters. Make a simple list of what the person owned and owed. Do not sign blank papers or hand originals to agents who promise to 'get everything done'.

📍 Where: At home; with the family.

What to do: Inform every insurer where the person had a policy (life, term, loan-linked, employer group cover) and ask for the death-claim form. Also check the bank passbook for small yearly auto-debits for government schemes such as PMJJBY or PMSBY — if the person was enrolled, a claim may be possible through that bank. If a claim is delayed or rejected, use the insurer's grievance cell first, then Bima Bharosa / the Insurance Ombudsman.

📍 Where: Insurer's branch or website / app; the bank for PMJJBY / PMSBY.

📂 Papers usually asked: Claim form, policy document, death certificate, MCCD, claimant's ID and bank details.

What to do: OTPs for the deceased's bank, EPF, insurance and other accounts may still come to their mobile number, and claims can get stuck without it. Keep the SIM active and safe until the main claims are done, then ask the operator to transfer the number to a family member or close it. Be alert to fraud calls that target grieving families ('pay a fee to release the claim').

📍 Where: Mobile operator's store / customer care.

📂 Papers usually asked: Death certificate, your ID, relationship proof as the operator asks.

What to do: A legal heir certificate is usually issued by the revenue / local authority (for example the Tehsildar, SDM or municipal office — it varies by State) and lists the family members; it is often asked for pension, government dues, service benefits and transfers of connections. A succession certificate is granted by a civil court (District Judge) under Section 372 of the Indian Succession Act for collecting debts and securities such as bank deposits or shares — often asked when there is no nominee or the amount is large. Not every family needs both; ask the institution exactly which one it needs.

📍 Where: Tehsil / revenue office or e-District portal (legal heir); District Court (succession certificate).

📂 Papers usually asked: Death certificate, family members' IDs, address proof, affidavit as asked.

What to do: Where there is a nominee or a surviving joint holder, the bank's process is usually simpler. Without a nominee, banks generally ask for legal heir papers with an indemnity, or a succession certificate, depending on the amount and their policy. Remember: a nominee usually receives the money, but courts have held that a nominee generally holds it for the legal heirs as per succession law — the nominee is not automatically the owner (life insurance has a special 'beneficial nominee' rule for spouse, parents and children under Section 39(7) of the Insurance Act).

📍 Where: Each bank branch.

📂 Papers usually asked: Bank's claim form, death certificate, KYC of claimant(s), passbook / FD receipts, heir papers if no nominee.

What to do: Ask the food & civil supplies office to remove the name from the ration card, or to change the head of family. Transfer the LPG connection to a family member at the gas distributor. Electricity, water and other connections in the deceased's name can be transferred as per the provider's rules.

📍 Where: Food & civil supplies office / State ration portal; LPG distributor; electricity / water office.

📂 Papers usually asked: Death certificate, ration card / LPG papers, the new holder's ID; legal heir papers or NOC from other heirs if asked.

What to do: UIDAI has a 'Reporting of Death of a Family Member' service on the myAadhaar portal for deaths registered in States / UTs using the Civil Registration System; a family member authenticates and gives the deceased's Aadhaar number and death registration number. Keep copies of the deceased's Aadhaar and PAN — you may still need them for claims.

📍 Where: myaadhaar.uidai.gov.in (availability depends on your State).

📂 Papers usually asked: Death certificate / death registration number, deceased's Aadhaar number, your own Aadhaar.

What to do: If the person had taxable income or tax deducted (TDS), a legal heir / legal representative files the return for the income up to the date of death (and any pending earlier year) — within the normal due date for that year. First register on the e-filing portal: Authorised Partners → Register as Representative Assessee → 'Deceased (Legal Heir)'. A refund, if any, can then be claimed. A chartered accountant or tax practitioner can help with the return itself.

📍 Where: incometax.gov.in e-filing portal (log in with your own PAN).

📂 Papers usually asked: Deceased's PAN, death certificate, legal heir proof (e.g. legal heir certificate, family pension certificate, registered will or bank letter naming nominee), your PAN.

What to do: Keep the deceased's PAN active until the final returns are filed, refunds received and any notices answered. After that, the legal heir may write to the jurisdictional Assessing Officer to surrender / cancel the PAN, with a copy of the death certificate.

📍 Where: Jurisdictional Assessing Officer (Income Tax Department).

📂 Papers usually asked: Application letter, PAN copy, death certificate, legal heir proof.

What to do: Go through this list once more: has every claim been paid, every record changed, every subscription or auto-debit stopped? Keep one file with copies of everything submitted and every receipt or acknowledgement. If the death was never registered, it can still be registered late under Section 13 — after one year it needs a Magistrate's order.

📍 Where: At home; follow up with each office.