Exhumation in the UK and Reburial in Ukraine

Exhumation licence and other permissions

England and Wales

The rule comes from section 25 of the Burial Act 1857, as substituted in 2015: removing a body or remains from a place of burial is an offence unless it is done under a licence from the Secretary of State or, for land under the jurisdiction of a Church of England consistory court, under a faculty. The licence is issued by the Ministry of Justice (Coroners, Burials, Cremation and Inquiries team).

How to apply:

1. The family fills in Part A of the form "Application for a licence for the removal of buried human remains". With the guidance notes it runs to 12 pages.
2. The burial authority (whoever runs the cemetery) completes Part B and names the local Environmental Health office. It may charge for this.
3. The completed form goes to coroners@justice.gov.uk. Post is possible but slower.

The Ministry does not charge for the licence. The form says a decision is normally made within 20 days of receipt. A licence is valid for 12 months and can be extended.

For a body going abroad you attach two letters: one from the cemetery in Ukraine confirming it will accept the burial, and one from the carrier (airline or shipping agent) confirming it will transport the remains.

Consecrated Church of England ground

If the grave is in ground consecrated according to the rites of the Church of England, you need a faculty from the diocesan consistory court. Since 2015 a faculty is enough even when the remains go to unconsecrated ground or abroad, and no separate Ministry licence is needed. That is what the Act says and what the table in the Ministry of Justice guidance notes shows. Some council websites still mention the old rule requiring both. Ground consecrated by the Roman Catholic Church or the Church in Wales does not have the same legal effect. The cemetery will tell you whether your plot is consecrated. Some councils say a faculty takes 4–6 weeks and there may be a fee. The Church treats burial as final, so a faculty for exhumation is not normally granted without special circumstances. The reasons for the move need to be set out in detail, and the outcome cannot be known in advance.

The coroner

Removing a body out of England falls under the Removal of Bodies Regulations 1954. Notice in the prescribed form goes to the coroner for the area where the remains lie. The body may not leave England until four clear days after the coroner receives the notice, unless the coroner confirms in writing that no further enquiries are needed.

Scotland

The process is different. The official mygov.scot site says you need a solicitor, who gets information from the burial ground administrator and asks the sheriff court for permission. Once the court agrees, the exhumation is arranged with the burial ground. Section 27 of the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 lets Scottish Ministers bring in a new procedure by regulations. We check with the local authority whether anything has changed by the time of your case.

Northern Ireland

In council-owned burial grounds, exhumation without the written consent of the Department for Communities is an offence. The council provides the form and completes Part B. If relatives of the same degree disagree, the Department will usually refuse. For burial grounds not owned by the council, you apply to your council's Environmental Health section. The applicant must tell the PSNI the date and time of the exhumation.

How an exhumation is carried out

The work is done by cemetery staff or a specialist contractor, with an Environmental Health Officer from the council present. Councils describe the officer's role like this: check that the correct grave is opened and that the coffin nameplate matches the licence, and make sure the site is screened, all remains and pieces of the old coffin go into a new approved coffin, the coffin is properly sealed and the area is disinfected.

Relatives can attend or appoint a representative to attend. Greenwich, for example, advises against going because it can be very distressing.

For transport to Ukraine you need a sealed, airtight metal coffin. Ukrainian law requires this for a body brought into the country. We arrange it with a local funeral director.

There is another route: cremate the remains in the UK and bring the urn home. You tick cremation on the licence application and the crematorium confirms in writing that it will accept the remains. An urn is simpler and cheaper to transport, but that is the family's decision and we will not push it.

Reburial in Ukraine

A UK licence does not give the right to bury someone in Ukraine. For that you need permission from the executive committee of the village, town or city council where the new grave will be. That confirmation from the Ukrainian cemetery is also the letter you attach to the UK application, which is why we suggest running the Ukrainian side in parallel. That way the council's permission is ready when the licence arrives.

Timeline: from the first call to the funeral in Ukraine

In total it usually takes several weeks, and two to three months in harder cases. The timing depends on the authorities, not on us. If a relative objects or the grave owner cannot be traced, everything takes longer.

What to do now

1. Find out the name of the cemetery, the grave number and who owns the right of burial.
2. Talk to all the next of kin: you will need their signatures.
3. Contact the council in Ukraine about a place for the reburial.
4. Call us. We will tell you what your case needs and take on the contact with the cemetery, the repatriation and the paperwork. Details of the service are on our page about repatriation of a body from the UK.

We are available 24/7 on +380 77 882 77 77, and on Viber, WhatsApp and Telegram.

Call +380 77 882 77 77Ask about exhumation