What to do after someone dies

When someone close to you dies, a long list of tasks can land on you while you are still in shock. Some things need attention in the first hours. Many others can wait days, weeks or even months.

This page walks through the main steps in the United States, in the order most families meet them. It includes notes for Virginia. You do not have to do everything at once, and you do not have to do it alone.

In the first few hours

Have the death confirmed. A death must be officially confirmed, or "pronounced," by a qualified person. Where this happens shapes who does it.

• At home, with hospice. Call the hospice. A hospice nurse comes to confirm the death and complete the paperwork that leads to the death certificate. Hospice staff can call the funeral home for you and help prepare the body to be moved.¹
• At home, without hospice, or unexpected. Call 911. Emergency staff and, in some cases, the medical examiner will be involved. Tell the dispatcher if the person had a do-not-resuscitate order.
• In a hospital or nursing home. The staff confirm the death. They will ask which funeral home you want to use.

You do not have to rush. After an expected death at home, you can take time to sit with the person, pray or say goodbye before the funeral home comes. State rules do set limits on how long the body can stay at home.¹ If the person was in hospice, see signs that death is near for what to expect.

Tell close family and friends. Ask one or two people to help make calls.

Look after the home. If the person lived alone, lock the home and make sure pets have care. Ask a neighbor to collect mail.

In the first few days: the funeral home and the service

Look for the person's wishes. Check for a prepaid funeral plan, a cemetery plot, or written wishes about burial or cremation. These may be with their papers, in their advance directive, or with a lawyer.

Know your rights at the funeral home. A federal rule called the FTC Funeral Rule protects you. Under it:²

• You can get prices by phone without giving your name.
• When you visit, the funeral home must hand you an itemized price list to keep.
• You can choose only the goods and services you want. You do not have to take a package.
• No state law requires embalming for every death. Cooling (refrigeration) is often an option.
• You can buy a casket or urn somewhere else. The funeral home cannot refuse it or charge a fee for using it.
• For direct cremation, you do not need a casket. The funeral home must offer a simple container, such as cardboard.
• Before you pay, you must get a written list of each item and the total.

Calling two or three funeral homes helps you compare prices. Bring a calm friend to the meeting if you can.

If the person was a veteran. The VA may help pay for burial and funeral costs. A surviving spouse who is already listed in VA records is often paid automatically. Others, such as children, friends or whoever paid the bill, can apply. For most deaths not related to military service, you must apply within 2 years of the burial.⁹ The VA may also help pay for a headstone or marker.⁹ See VA benefits for more.

Death certificates

A death certificate is the official record of the death. You will need it again and again.

Certified or plain copy? Banks, insurance companies, pension plans and Social Security usually need a certified copy. A plain photocopy may be enough for small things, such as canceling a subscription. Ask each place what it needs.³

How many to get. Count the accounts and policies the person had. Many families order their first copies through the funeral home. Death certificates can take several days or longer to be ready.¹

Who can order them. In most states, close family such as a spouse, child or sibling can order copies from the vital records office of the state where the death happened.³

Social Security and Medicare

Reporting the death. The funeral home usually tells Social Security about the death. Give the funeral director the person's Social Security number. If no funeral home is involved, call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213 (TTY 1-800-325-0778). Social Security takes death reports only by phone or in person.^5,7

One report covers Medicare too. Social Security handles death reports for Medicare, so you do not need to call Medicare separately.^7,8 If the person had a Medicare Advantage, drug (Part D) or supplement plan, call the plan as well so premiums stop.

Payments after the death. Social Security does not pay benefits for the month a person dies. For example, if someone dies in July, the payment that arrives in August is for July and must be returned. If payments go into a bank account, tell the bank as soon as you can and ask it to return them. Do not spend these payments.⁷

Help for survivors. A surviving spouse may get a one-time payment of $255. If there is no spouse, some children may get it.^5,6 A widow or widower, some former spouses and some children may also get monthly survivor benefits based on the person's work record.^5,6 The amount is higher the longer a spouse waits to claim, up to full retirement age.⁶ Call Social Security to ask. For more, see losing a husband or wife.

Other places to tell

Most places will ask for the person's Social Security number and a death certificate.¹⁰

1. Government offices: the VA, federal or military retirement offices if the person got those benefits, the state DMV, the passport office, voter registration, and any state benefit programs.¹⁰
2. Banks and credit card companies. Ask what they need from you.¹⁰
3. The three national credit bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). Report the death to them.¹⁰ This helps keep others from opening credit in the person's name.
4. Employer or former employer, to ask about a final paycheck, pension or life insurance.
5. Life insurance companies. Look through papers and bank statements for policies.
6. Utilities, phone, internet, subscriptions and memberships. Cancel or move them into another name.¹⁰
7. The post office, to forward mail to the person handling the estate.

Bank accounts, bills and debts

Joint bank accounts. Most joint accounts include "rights of survivorship." That means the money goes straight to the living owner. Some accounts are set up differently, so the person's share goes to heirs. Check the account papers or ask the bank.¹²

Power of attorney ends at death. If you were the person's agent under a power of attorney, your authority stops when they die. In Virginia, this is written into state law.¹⁵ After that, the executor or administrator takes over.

Debts. Debts do not disappear at death. They are paid out of the person's estate, which means the money and property they left. If the estate runs out of money, the debt usually goes unpaid. Family members usually do not have to pay from their own money.¹¹

You may be responsible, though, if you:¹¹

• co-signed the loan or card,
• were the spouse in a state with special rules (such as community property states), or
• were in charge of the estate and did not follow state law.

Debt collectors may contact you once to find out who is handling the estate. They may not talk about the debt with you unless you are the spouse, the executor or another allowed person. You can report unfair collectors to the FTC.¹¹

The will, the executor and probate

Find the will. Look through the person's papers, safe, or desk. Ask their lawyer. The original signed will matters most.

What probate is. Probate is the court process that confirms the will and gives someone legal power to settle the estate. That person is called the executor if named in a will, or the administrator if there is no will.^11,13 Their job is to gather the property, pay debts and taxes, and pass what is left to the right people.

Not everything goes through probate. Some things pass straight to a named person outside probate, such as:¹³

• joint accounts with survivorship rights,
• life insurance with a named beneficiary,
• real estate owned with survivorship rights in the deed.

If there is no will. State law decides who inherits. See wills and trusts for the basics.

When to get a lawyer. You may want help if the estate owns a house, has a business, has debts larger than its assets, or if family members disagree. See finding an elder law attorney, which includes free legal aid options.

Taxes

Someone must file the person's final income tax return for the year they died. This is usually the surviving spouse or the executor. It is due by the normal April deadline. A surviving spouse can usually still file a joint return for that year.¹⁶

A spouse raising dependent children may be able to use a special filing status for 2 years after the death. A person who is not a spouse or court-appointed may need to attach IRS Form 1310 to claim a refund.¹⁶

A simple timeline

Take care of yourself, too

Paperwork can feel endless. Take breaks and let others help with calls and errands. See helping someone who is grieving to share with friends who ask what they can do.

If the person was in hospice, the hospice offers grief support to family for up to 12 months after the death.¹ Read what grief can feel like and the grief overview.

If grief stays very intense for a long time and keeps you from daily life, talk with a doctor. Learn about prolonged grief disorder. If you have thoughts of suicide, call or text 988, or call 911 in an emergency. You can also see where to get help.

Common questions

Can I use my power of attorney to pay the funeral bill from Mom's account?

No. The power of attorney stopped when she died.¹⁵ If the account was joint with survivorship rights, the money may already be yours.¹² If not, the executor or administrator handles it.

Do I need a lawyer for probate?

Not always. The circuit court clerk handles most of the probate steps, and some small estates do not need full probate at all.^13,14 A lawyer helps when there is real estate, conflict or debt.

Education only. This page is general information written from the sources listed. It is not medical, legal or financial advice and does not replace a doctor, therapist or lawyer who knows your situation. How we write and check pages.