Pennsylvania Home Funeral Laws

If you are interested in holding a home funeral for a loved one who has died, you'll need to be aware of the laws that apply. Here is an overview of the rules that govern home funerals in Pennsylvania.

Do You Need a Funeral Director in Pennsylvania?

In all states, it is legal to have your loved one's body at home after they die. Pennsylvania does not require you to involve a licensed funeral director in making or carrying out final arrangements. (See, for example, 35 Pennsylvania Statutes § 450.504 (2018), which permits a "funeral director or the person in charge of interment" to file the death certificate.)

Who Has the Right to Make Funeral Arrangements in Pennsylvania?

Pennsylvania law determines who has the right to make final decisions about a person's body and funeral services. This right and responsibility goes to the following people, in order:

• a person you name before your death in "an explicit and sincere expression, either verbal or written"
• your surviving spouse, or
• your next of kin.

(Pennsylvania Statutes, Title 20, Chapter 3 § 305 (2018).)

If you don't name a person to handle your final arrangements and there is a disagreement between two or more people with equal standing as your next of kin -- for example, if you have several children or many siblings -- they will have to go to court to resolve their dispute. (Pennsylvania Statutes, Title 20, Chapter 3 § 305(d)(2)2C (2018).) To avoid such an outcome, it's best to name a representative in advance.

Appointing your decision maker. To name someone to carry out your final wishes, you need only make your wishes clear to your survivors. It's best to put your desires in writing; if you feel that a verbal statement would be easier, however, you can ask someone to document it on video. As with any plan, be sure your survivors will have ready access to it.

One smart way to name your representative is to make a Pennsylvania health care power of attorney. In your document, you can give your health care agent explicit power to carry out your final arrangements. (You must make this authority clear in your advance directive; otherwise your agent's decision-making power ends upon your death.) This saves the trouble of making separate documents for health care decisions and final wishes.

For information about making a health care power of attorney, see Living Wills & Medical Powers of Attorney.

To make a Pennsylvania health care power of attorney that appoints your health care agent to carry out your final plans, you can use Nolo's Quicken WillMaker.

If you are in the military, you may name the person who will carry out your final wishes in the Record of Emergency Data provided by the Department of Defense.

Who pays for your funeral arrangements? You can either pay for your plans before you die, or you can set aside money for your survivors to use for this purpose. If you don't do either of these things, and there's not enough money in your estate to pay for funeral goods and services, your survivors must cover the costs.

Must the Body Be Embalmed?

Embalming is almost never required. In Pennsylvania, a body must be embalmed, refrigerated, or placed in a sealed container if disposition will not occur within 24 hours after death. (49 Pennsylvania Administrative Code § 13.201 (2018).)

Furthermore, if the death was due to a noncontagious disease and the body will be transported by common carrier -- such as an airplane or train -- and it will not reach its destination within 24 hours after death, the body must be embalmed or placed in a "metal or metal-lined, hermetically sealed container." (28 Pennsylvania Administrative Code § 1.23 (2018).)

Refrigeration or dry ice can usually preserve a body for a short time. There are resources available to help you learn to prepare a body at home for burial or cremation. The website of the National Home Funeral Alliance is a good place to start.

If the person died of a contagious disease, you should consult a doctor.

Getting a Death Certificate in Pennsylvania

If you will not be using a funeral director to carry out final arrangements, you must complete and file the death certificate yourself. Pennsylvania law requires you to file the death certificate with the state or local registrar of vital statistics within four days after the death and before final disposition. (35 Pennsylvania Statutes §§ 450.501 and 450.504 (2018).)

The deceased person's doctor, certified nurse practitioner, or the coroner will complete the medical portion of the death certificate, which contains such information as date, time, and cause of death. You will then need to fill in the rest of the information and file the death certificate. (35 Pennsylvania Statutes § 450.502 (2018).) For more information, contact the Pennsylvania Bureau of Health Statistics.

You will need certified copies of the death certificate to carry out certain tasks after the death, such as arranging for the disposition of the body and transferring the deceased person's property to inheritors. You may be able to file the death certificate and get certified copies the same day. If not, you will have to make a return trip to pick up the copies. Be prepared to pay a small fee for each copy.

Getting a Permit to Transport the Body

After the death certificate has been filed, the registrar will issue a "permit for disposal." This permit will allow you to move the body for purposes of burial or cremation. (35 Pennsylvania Statutes § 450.504 (2018).)

Can You Bury a Body at Home?

There are no state laws in Pennsylvania prohibiting home burial, but local governments may have rules governing private burials. Before burying a body on private property or establishing a family cemetery, you should check with the county or town clerk for any zoning laws you must follow.

Pennsylvania law prohibits burials on any land that drains into a stream supplying water to a city, unless the burial ground sits at least one mile from the city. (9 Pennsylvania Statutes § 10 (2018).)

What About Cremation?

Some crematories require that you use a funeral director to arrange cremation. If you don't want to use a funeral director, make sure the crematory is willing to accept the body directly from the family. In Pennsylvania, the deceased person's doctor or the coroner will issue and sign a form containing the deceased person's identifying information and details of the cremation. This form must also be signed by the crematory operator. You will then need to file the form with the local department of health, which will issue the cremation permit. (35 Pennsylvania Statutes §§ 1121 and 1122 (2018).)

There is a required waiting period of 24 hours before cremation may occur. (49 Pennsylvania Administrative Code § 13.212 (2018).)

For more information about cremation, including information on scattering ashes, see Burial and Cremation Laws in Pennsylvania.

Getting Help With Home Funerals

Even the most staunch home funeral advocates know that learning to care for one's own dead can be difficult, especially during a time of grief. If you need help, there are people available to coach you through the process. You can find local guides, consultants, and other resources by visiting the National Home Funeral Alliance website. The book Final Rights, by Joshua Slocum and Lisa Carlson, also offers extensive information on the subject.

For more information about final arrangements and documenting your final wishes in advance, see Nolo's section on Getting Your Affairs in Order.