Ashes repatriation, to and from the UK. Every paper ready before you travel
Whether the ashes are going to a family grave in Poland, a river in India or home to the UK, we gather the papers the airline and the border ask for, in a container an airport scanner can see through. You carry them, or we send them by air freight, in either direction.
“Mr Sebastian Kirila was very kind, very helpful and did all the paperwork for repatriation. They really helped me in the most difficult time.”
“During the most heartbreaking time of our lives, Sebastian from Funero made everything feel calm, respectful, and completely hassle-free.”
“Funero made it very easy. We are very glad we found them. They handled everything. Great price as well.”
“I couldn’t be more impressed. Their pricing was competitive, and the process was incredibly fast.”
From the first call to the ashes at home
Call us at any hour. You do not need any documents for that first call.
Step 1
The first call
Tell us where the ashes are, or where your loved one is, and where the ashes are going. We tell you what that country asks for and send a written quote.
Step 2
The cremation, if it is still to come
Our direct cremation is £1,295, fixed, and the ashes are ready in 7 to 10 days. If the cremation has already taken place, here or abroad, we start from the papers.
Step 3
The papers
The certificate of cremation, the death certificate and our letter, with a translation or a consulate’s permit where the destination asks for one.
Step 4
Carried or sent
In a travel urn that passes an airport scanner, for you to carry, or sent by air freight, with the family at the other end told the day it arrives.
What stops ashes at the airport
Ashes cross borders far more easily than a coffin. These are the things that still hold them up.
What usually happens
A metal urn that the airport scanner cannot see through.
A travel urn that scans, with your own urn kept for later.
A consulate’s permit that nobody asked about.
We check the destination’s list on the first day.
A photocopy where the border wanted the original.
The original papers, translated where they need to be.
The airline told for the first time at check-in.
We tell you what your airline asks, before you book.
Separate bills for the cremation, papers and freight.
One written quote, and that figure is the invoice.
Questions families ask us about ashes
Yes. Ryanair, easyJet, British Airways, TUI and Air India all allow ashes in the cabin, in a container that security can X-ray: wood, cardboard, plastic or a ceramic without lead lining. Security does not open the urn, so one the scanner cannot see through may be refused. British Airways and Air India also take them in the hold. easyJet and TUI want to be told before you fly; British Airways does not. Taking ashes on a plane compares the airlines’ rules.
Three, in most cases: the certificate of cremation from the crematorium, a certified copy of the death certificate, and a letter from the funeral director saying whose ashes they are. Some countries add a translation, an apostille or a permit from their consulate in London. We check the current list for your destination before anything is booked.
Yes. If no one in the family can travel, we send the ashes by air freight, with the same papers, and tell the family at the other end the day they will arrive. We do the same for ashes coming home to the UK. Royal Mail and Parcelforce do not carry ashes abroad.
Yes. If your loved one has been, or will be, cremated abroad, we bring the ashes home by air freight with the cremation and death certificates, or tell you what the airline and the airport ask for if you would rather carry them. The UK asks for no permit to bring ashes in.
India asks for more than most countries: an ashes certificate from its High Commission, applied for through VFS Global, and at least 48 hours’ notice to the health officer at the arrival airport. The permit can take longer than the family hopes, so we apply the day the certificate of cremation is issued. Taking ashes to India from the UK sets out each paper, the customs at Haridwar and Kiratpur Sahib, and the immersion in the UK instead.
Yes. A small amount, a keepsake urn or a pendant needs the same papers as the whole, because a border officer cannot tell the two apart. Tell us how the ashes are to be divided and we prepare a set of papers for each part.
Yes, in London, Nottinghamshire and Doncaster. Our direct cremation is £1,295, fixed, with collection, the coffin, the cremation fee and every form included, and the ashes are ready in 7 to 10 days. We then prepare the papers for the ashes to travel.
It depends on where the ashes are going, whether a consulate charges for a permit, and whether you carry them or we send them. Ask for a written quote: the figure we quote is the figure on the invoice.
In a family's own words
Taking ashes on a plane: airline and airport rules
Taking ashes abroad: the documents and the cost
Taking ashes to India: the ashes certificate, the flight and the river
Someone answers, any hour of the day
Tell us where the ashes are and where they are going. A written quote, usually within 30 minutes.
Nigeria
Jamaica
Romania
Bulgaria
Slovakia
France
Germany
Hungary
