Embassy of the United States Luxembourg

The Consular Section can assist family and friends in the event of the death of an American Citizen in Luxembourg. If requested by the next of kin, the Consular Section will act as liaison in arranging the disposition or shipping of remains and help with forwarding personal effects. The family or legal representative must pay all funeral home charges, shipping costs of the remains and personal effects (if applicable). In case of shipment of human remains abroad, the Consular Section will work with any funeral home selected by the family to ensure proper documentation for shipment of remains to the United States.

Even if no assistance is needed in making funeral arrangements, the death of an American citizen, whether resident or tourist, should be reported to the U.S. Embassy so that a Report of Death of an American Citizen Abroad can be issued. This document is necessary to settle legal and estate matters in the United States.

How to reach the Consular Section:
Phone: (352) 460123 x2225 or x2226
Fax: (352) 461939
E-mail: Luxembourgconsular@state.gov

Major funeral homes used by U.S. citizens:

Luxembourg City:

• Erasmy, 21 rue de Peupliers, L-2328 Luxembourg
  Phone: 352 43 42 02, fax: 352 42 02 82
• Maison Platz, 10 rue de la Boucherie, L-1247 Luxembourg
  Phone: 352 22 32 48, fax: 352 47 18 58

Luxembourg south:

• Paul Brandenburger, 31 rue St. Vincent, L-4344 Esch-sur-Alzette and 1 rue de l’Eau, L-3232 Bettembourg
  Phone: 352 54 02 93, fax: 352 54 37 71
• Goebel Jean & Fils, 1 rue des Benedictins, L-6414 Echternach
  Phone: 352 72 82 15, fax: 352 72 61 63

Profile of services available in the host country regarding preparation and shipment of remains:
Refrigerated morgues are available in hospitals, at the airport and in the 'communes’ (administrative municipalities). Small communes have usually only space for one casket in the morgue. Cost is USD 95 for up to three days, and USD 30 for each additional day. If the death occurred at home or on the premises of a commune, the body will be placed in a casket in the communal morgue until the funeral. The deceased cannot be laid out at home or at the funeral home for public viewing. Private viewing by the close family is possible in a separate room at the commune before the casket is brought to the funeral ceremony. Funeral homes in Luxembourg offer qualified and experienced service and make all necessary arrangements in consultation with the next of kin.

Embalming:
Embalming is not customary for interment in Luxembourg; if requested, it can be performed by a contractor from neighboring Belgium. The cost for embalming is USD 630. The funeral home makes the necessary arrangements. There is no requirement for embalming in Luxembourg except for shipment of human remains abroad.
Requirement for autopsy:

Legal autopsy:
Under Luxembourg law, the General Prosecutor must order that an autopsy be conducted if there is any indication of suspicious circumstances, violent or unnatural death. The Parquet (judicial authority) will bear the expenses and the funeral must be postponed until authorized by the Parquet.

Medical autopsy:
the treating physician can request that an autopsy be conducted in case of unconfirmed or unknown cause of death; it is mandatory for stillborns. The hospital will bear the expenses.

An autopsy can also be requested and paid for by the family of the deceased. The family has the right to appoint a doctor of their own choice who will attend the autopsy at their expense.

Maximum period before Burial of Remains:
Interment or cremation cannot occur before 24 hours after the death, but must take place within 72 hours. It can be postponed for 24 hours, and, in exceptional cases, the ‘Direction de la Santé’, Ministry of Health, allows postponement for another 48 hours. Persons who died from a highly contagious disease have to be cremated without delay.

Cremation:
In Luxembourg, cremation is only possible in the crematorium in Hamm, a public and independent institution in a suburb of Luxembourg City. Before any cremation can take place, an official of the commune where the death occurred has to issue a transport and cremation permit. Cremation will only be authorized if the deceased had declared his wish to be cremated in a notarized statement or, if there is no statement, the next of kin signs a written request at the funeral home. A request from a legal guardian will only be recognized if the deceased gave specific authorization to the guardian in a notarized statement.

The ashes can either be deposited in a columbarium at the cemetery (cost USD 158), or they can be scattered in a specific plot available in certain ‘communes’, at the cemetery in Merl, or in the ‘Jardin du souvenir’ (garden of remembrance) adjacent to the crematorium. It is not permitted to keep cremated remains at home. Most communes offer placement in a columbarium on the ground of the cemetery. As a temporary arrangement, ashes can be stored at the funeral home or at the crematory for three months before making a final decision. The funeral home can arrange for shipment of cremated remains abroad.
Cost for a cremation is USD 550.

Interment:
Wooden coffins are widely used for interment in Luxembourg; funeral homes offer a large choice in various price ranges (USD 1800-3000 and upward). A zinc-lined, hermetically sealed casket is required, if human remains have to be transported more than 350 km by hearse or if they are shipped by air.

Exportation:
The funeral home makes necessary arrangements for transportation by air or any convenient shipment of human remains abroad. Administrative fees amount to USD 400, in addition to USD 650 for required embalming and USD 990 for preparation of remains for shipment (including the required zinc-lined, hermetically sealed casket). Airfreight charges will be calculated depending on the flight route and carrier. A funeral home in the country of destination must be retained beforehand and communicated to the Luxembourg funeral home.

Exhumation:
Exhumation is only possible if requested within a few years after interment, and must be authorized by the Ministry of Health and the commune owning the cemetery. If the remains are to be buried in another commune in Luxembourg, that commune has to agree as well. The exhumation has to be supervised by officials as designated by the Ministry of Health. Interments at the American cemetery in Luxembourg are permanent; it is not possible to repatriate the remains.

Shipping of human remains abroad:
As Luxembourg is a small country, in-country transportation of human remains is carried out by hearse (cost is USD 85-110). The funeral home makes the necessary arrangements and requests transport permits and certificates. There are no direct commercial flights to the U.S. from the Luxembourg airport. The international freight carrier airline Cargolux operates several direct routes from Luxembourg to airports in the U.S. As an option, transit via Frankfurt, Germany, is often the best connection to the U.S. The funeral home will provide required transit permits (laissez-passer) and request a Consular Mortuary Certificate from the U.S. Embassy to facilitate U.S. customs clearance.

Transportation of cremated remains by hearse is possible, but not required (except to neighboring Germany). Airline passengers carrying cremated remains should notify the airline when making the flight reservation. The funeral home will prepare an appropriate container and document it with a certificate showing the final destination and an identification number. It is not advisable to send cremated remains by mail.

Costs:
Charges are based on the exchange rate of March 31, 2008: USD 1.00 = 0.63 Euro

1. Local burial: minimum USD 8300
   Fees include transportation by hearse, wooden coffin, morgue fee, mortician’s charges, administrative fees, renting of a burial plot for an initial period of 15 years in Luxembourg City, basic tombstone, and civil or religious service.
2. Cremation and local disposal of ashes: minimum USD 1100
   Fees include transportation to crematorium, administrative fees, cremation, cinerary urn, civil or religious ceremony, placement in an urn space or columbarium niche.
3. Preparation and shipment of human remains: minimum USD 2100 (excluding airfreight costs and U.S. funeral costs)
   Fees include administrative fees, flight arrangements, embalming, preparation of a special container required for shipment of remains, transportation to airport.
4. Cremation and air shipment of ashes: minimum USD 650 (excluding airfreight costs)
   Fees include transportation to crematorium, cremation, preparation of cremated remains for shipment in a special container.

Local customs regarding funerals, disposition of remains, mourning, memorial services:
Interment has been the custom in Luxembourg for decades, though the number of cremations is increasing. The funeral service will be organized after consultation with an official from the commune, the pastor and the funeral home (the funeral home can make all those arrangements for the next of kin or family). The deceased is brought to the communal morgue or its chapel of rest. A memorial ceremony of civil or religious nature in the presence of an official will take place before the interment. The casket is closed during the whole ceremony. Obituary notices advertising the memorial service are generally published in the local newspapers.
Burial plots in Luxembourg have to be rented for an initial period of 15 or 30 years, renewable after end of those terms. Cost for a single plot is USD 310 for 15 years, and USD 950 for 30 years. A family vault can be rented for USD 2200 for 15 years, and USD 3160 for 30 years.

Cemeteries are owned and maintained by the ‘communes’, the municipal council can grant burial plots and family vaults. Any person providing for the funeral can have a monument set up for the deceased, according to regulations established by the municipal council. The tombstone will be provided and set up by a monumental mason (USD 5500 and upwards for a single grave and USD 8000 and upwards for a double grave)