Arranging a funeral from another town or from abroad

The first contact from a distance

When a relative dies in Helsinki and you are elsewhere, the first call is enough to set everything in motion. We answer on 09 6129 890 at any hour, also when you call from abroad. We ask for the deceased's name, the place of death and your contact details, and agree the collection of the deceased. The hospital or care home keeps the deceased until the funeral home collects them; there is no deadline for the first call, and most families call within a few days. The doctor who confirms the death writes the death certificate and hands the burial permit to a relative or the funeral home; we can receive it on your behalf, so you need not travel for the document. Arrangements can begin before the permit is ready.

One contact person and the shared family space

In practice one relative agrees to act as the contact person, and the others take part in decisions. The contact person need not live in Helsinki or even in Finland. We open a shared online space for the family, where everyone invited sees the same choices, prices, documents and schedule. Messages with the funeral adviser run in the same thread, so siblings in different time zones read the same information at their own hour and no one has to relay messages to the others. When the contact person confirms a choice, it appears to everyone at once. This avoids the situation where one person handles everything and the others hear about decisions afterwards. The space stays in use throughout the arrangements and afterwards, when the invoices and the estate inventory documents are shared there.

What can be done online and by phone

Almost every decision about the funeral can be made online or by phone without visiting the office. Coffins and urns are on show at our office, but the choice can also be made from photos and prices in the shared space. We book the blessing time, chapel and pastor from the parish, order the flowers, draft and place the death notice and agree the memorial catering with the partner restaurant. Parish and crematorium fees pass through us unchanged.

• Form of burial: cremation or burial, and the place of the blessing
• Coffin from 520 euros and urn from 95 euros, chosen from photos or at the office
• Clothing for the deceased: you send the clothes or we choose together
• Flowers ordered 2-4 days before the ceremony and delivered to the chapel, coffin spray 185 euros
• Death notice in the paper: we draft it in the shared space for approval
• Memorial catering from 29.90 euros per person at partner restaurants
• The estate inventory from the same office, 590 euros for funeral clients

Electronic signatures and powers of attorney

For the funeral arrangements a relative's verbal or written instruction is enough, so the assignment can be given by phone and confirmed in the shared space. Documents that need a signature are signed electronically with bank authentication, and nothing has to be posted. Someone living abroad without Finnish bank credentials can sign on paper, and we then advise which document is sufficient. For the estate inventory a party living far away can give a power of attorney to another party or to us, but it is not essential: a party is not obliged to attend the meeting, and absence takes no rights away. The meeting can be held remotely and, with the deed prepared, takes under an hour.

The schedule when relatives travel from afar

Funerals are usually held 2-4 weeks after the death; blessings in Helsinki chapels run Tuesday to Saturday, usually within 2-3 weeks. We set the day so that those coming from afar can arrive, and tell you at once if the wished-for day is not free. Waiting has a cost: the parish union's cold storage is 50 euros per started week for the first three weeks and 15 euros per started day after that. If the family needs more time, cremation gives it. The blessing can be held at the coffin soon and the urn lowered later, or the blessing held at the urn only once everyone can be present. The urn is kept free of charge at the parish union crematorium for six months and then for 30 euros per started month; the ashes must be placed within one year of the cremation.

A viewing and farewell for those arriving later

A relative travelling from afar does not always arrive before the deceased has been moved to the chapel's cold rooms. A viewing of the deceased in the chapel before the blessing can still be arranged: the Helsinki parish union's burial services charge 80 euros for it, and we book the time and are present. A viewing also suits when part of the family wants a quiet moment without other guests, for example the day before the blessing. If the deceased is cremated without a blessing at the coffin, the farewell moment is arranged before the cremation. Tell us when you arrive, and we fit the viewing and blessing times to your travel. We agree the viewing time with the burial services and record it in the shared space, so every family member knows when and where it is.

Following the blessing remotely

If a relative cannot travel, transmitting or recording the blessing can be agreed with the parish and the officiating pastor. Ask us about this in good time, so we find out what is possible in the chosen chapel or church and tell you if something cannot be done. A relative following from afar can also take part in other ways: words of remembrance they have written can be read at the ceremony, flowers they have ordered are laid in their name, and their condolence card is read at the memorial gathering. The memorial gathering can also be held later when everyone can attend, for example when the urn is lowered. The terms of any transmission or recording are decided by the parish, so we promise nothing until it has been confirmed there.

Transport of the deceased to another town

If your relative died in Helsinki but is to be buried in their home town or in a family grave elsewhere in Finland, we handle the transport. Long-distance transport is priced by distance, and we give the price in advance before anything binds. Only a funeral home, a health care unit or the police may transport a deceased person; relatives cannot drive the deceased themselves, but may be present at the transfer. We agree the blessing, the grave and, if needed, the cremation with the parish at the destination, and check the grave right to a family grave. Parish fees depend on the deceased's home municipality, not on the place of death. If the death happened abroad, see the guide When a relative dies abroad or in another town.

Invoices and payment from a distance

Our invoice comes after the funeral, and the parish union's invoice arrives separately after the blessing. You agree among yourselves who the invoice is addressed to, and we share the invoice and the payment link in the shared space, where everyone invited can see it. The invoice need not be paid from your own money: the bank usually pays the funeral invoice from the deceased's account against the invoice, and we can send the invoice to the bank at the contact person's request. Funeral costs are deducted in the estate inventory, so the invoices are stored in the shared space for that too. A full funeral usually costs between 2,500 and 5,000 euros; every item and every parish fee is shown itemised in the space before confirmation.

What we handle and the next step

When the funeral is arranged from afar, we handle everything that requires presence in Helsinki: collecting and transporting the deceased, receiving the burial permit, dressing and placing in the coffin, the bookings with the parish and crematorium, placing the flowers and the death notice, the practical arrangements for the viewing and the blessing, and the memorial catering. Your part is the decisions, which you make in the shared space at your own pace, and coming to the ceremony itself. We serve you in Finnish, Swedish and English. Call 09 6129 890 or book a planning visit at Annankatu 12; the visit is free of charge. The planning visit can also be held by phone or remotely if no one in the family is in Helsinki. If someone in the family is in town, they can visit the office while the others follow the same space from where they live.

Frequently asked questions