Issuance of a death certificate from 1 July 2019.
From 1 July 2019, the registration of a death became quicker and more convenient. Now, the person close to the deceased will no longer have to register the death in the local government, but will receive the document (death certificate) required for burial from a health care institution. The primary death certificate can be issued to a close person of the deceased after the cause of death is known and transmitted to the health information system and the death has been registered in the population register.
Death certificates are issued at the North Estonia Medical Centre in two medical campuses:
- Mustamäe medical campus, 19 Sütiste tee, information line (Mon.–Fri.: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., Sat.–Sun.: 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.)
- Hiiu medical campus, aftercare clinic, 44 Hiiu Street – Secretary of the Departments, 39 Hiiu Street – secretary (Mon.–Fri.: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.).
When issuing a death certificate:
- The personal identification code and identity document of the deceased are requested from the person close to them (to obtain a certificate from the health information system, the information system asks for the recipient’s name, personal identification code, and connection with the deceased).
- The funeral home must have the authority of the person close to the deceased. The name of the close person of the deceased and the representation of the funeral home is entered in the connection field as the recipient of the death certificate.
- The health care institution issues only one or primary death certificate and its issuance is free of charge. A new death certificate can be obtained from the local government of the county centre.
Death of a foreign national
The medical centre issues a death certificate and a statement of the cause of death to the close person/representative. In order to obtain a death certificate, the representative of the deceased must apply to the vital statistics office.
Following a forensic autopsy and forensic examination, a medical death certificate is issued from the Northern Estonian Forensic Medical Examination Department of the Estonian Forensic Science Institute at 30 Tervise Street, Tallinn:
- on weekdays from 9 a.m. to 4.30 p.m., by prior arrangement by phone 663 6762.
Personal belongings of the deceased
The personal belongings can be obtained from the department where the deceased was last treated. They are returned on working days on the basis of a death certificate and an identity document of the representative. The representative of the deceased may be a member of their family, a close person of them, or a representative appointed pursuant to the procedure established by law. Please make an appointment by phone in advance to make the process faster. Valuables and items that could not be removed before being transported to the funeral home are issued at the Tallinn Funeral Home to the person who submitted the medical death certificate on the basis of an identity document.