Embassy of the United States Kuwait City, Kuwait

The American Citizen Services Unit (ACS) of the Consular Section at the U.S. Embassy in Kuwait will assist family and friends in the event of the death of an American citizen in Kuwait.  The family or legal representative (Sponsoring Company) must pay all funeral home charges, shipping costs for the remains and personal effects.

Even if no assistance is needed in making local funeral arrangements, the death of an American citizen resident in Kuwait should be reported to the U.S. Embassy, American Citizens’ Services (ACS) Unit 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.

For U.S. Customs clearance the ACS Unit will issue multiple copies of the Consular Mortuary Certificate that will be attached with a) the original Consular Report of Death, b) a copy of Kuwaiti death certificate with English translation, c) a copy of Preventive Medicine certificate with English translation and d) a copy of the shipping carrier’s airway bill.

The Embassy should be notified about the death of an American citizen by calling: 2259-1001 or e-mail: KuwaitACS@state.gov .

When a death occurs outside a hospital, the police should be immediately notified at the Ministry of Interior emergency number 112.  Along with police officers, forensic medicine personal will arrive to the scene to transfer the remains to the Forensic Medicine Department (Tel: 2434-5322) in Farwaniya.  An autopsy may be necessary to determine the cause of death.  Organs and tissue samples may be removed and retained by the authorities at the time of autopsy per Kuwaiti law.  At the same time, the Investigation Office within the police station that has jurisdiction over the place of death may open a case file.

If the cause of the sudden death is determined to be natural the Investigation Office’s jurisdiction ceases and there is no requirement for further inquiry and the investigator will issue a burial permit.

If the death is sudden or suspicious, or evidence exists that indicates that the death was violent or unnatural, the Investigator will hold an inquest. 

Such an inquest may take several weeks or months (however the Investigation Office will still issue the necessary burial permit to allow funeral arrangements or body transfer procedures to proceed).  In this case the cause of death on the death certificate will indicate “has not been determined”. 

To assist in obtaining the paperwork necessary to repatriate the remains, the Embassy will issue the following documents to the legal representative (company representative) upon presentation of the original U.S. passport of the deceased:

1. A letter to the investigator’s officer requesting the issuance of the burial permit and  its  release with all personal items of the deceased to the legal representative;
2. A letter to the Forensic Medicine Department requesting the release of the remains and any personal items of the deceased to the legal representative (make sure that you keep the original letter for your next visit); and
3. A letter to the Ministry of Heath requesting the issuance of the death certificate.

After obtaining the necessary burial permit the Forensic Medicine Department will issue a report of death (known as a pink sheet).  Based on that report of death the Vital Records of the Ministry of Health will issue an official Kuwaiti death certificate.   At the Vital Records the legal representative will be requested to submit the original Kuwaiti Civil ID card of the deceased.

The Vital Records office in Salmiya area covers Hawalli Governorate, and the Vital Records office in Fahaheel area covers Ahmadi Governorate.  At each of these steps the appropriate Embassy letter should be submitted.

Next, the official Kuwaiti death certificate must be translated to English.  Any publicly available translation service may do this.  There is no need to authenticate the English translation.

However, you must have the Arabic death certificate authenticated by the Consular Department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  The main office of the Consular Department is located in Shuwaikh area next to Kuwait News Agency building.  They provide services from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. from Sunday to Thursday.  The Consular Department also has a desk that operates in the afternoon from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Government Mall which is close to the Liberation Tower in Kuwait City.

It is the responsibility of the legal representative to select the appropriate carrier for the repatriation of the remains to the United States.  The issuance of an airway bill requires coordination with the U.S. Funeral Home that will receive the body.

The day before the remains are shipped to the United States, the body must be transferred from the MOI’s Forensic Medicine Department to the Al-Sabah Hospital Morgue (Tel: 2483-2090), which is the only medical facility in Kuwait where remains are prepared for shipment. 

In order to complete this process the legal representative needs to visit the Preventive Medicine Unit of Al-Sabah Hospital with the:

1. Original Kuwaiti death certificate ;
2. Copy of a carrier final Airway Bill that indicates the shipment day; and
3. Copy of the burial permit issued by the Investigation Department.

The Preventive Medicine Unit will issue:

1. A letter clearing body shipment from Kuwait to the United States (this document is issued in multiple color copies and must be translated to English);
2. An appointment sheet for the U.S. Embassy for casket sealing which will be based on information given on the Airway Bill; and
3. A form of authorization requesting the Forensic Medicine Department to the transfer the remains to Al-Sabah Hospital Morgue.

After receiving all above documents from the Preventive Medicine Unit, the legal representative must return to the Forensic Medicine Department submit:

1. A copy of the official Kuwaiti death certificate;
2. The body transfer authorization from the Preventive Medicine; and
3. Embassy letter to the Forensic Medicine Department requesting the release of the remains and any personal items of the deceased to the legal representative.

Please note: during the transfer process it is the responsibility of the legal representative to positively identify the remains of the deceased.  As well, the legal representative must escort and witness the receipt of the remains by Al-Sabah Hospital Morgue.

Although it looks like a coffin, the body must be shipped in a sealed shipping container.  We recommend purchasing this container from coffin maker Mr. Emad (Mobile 9962-2796).  The legal representative needs to advise him of the shipment day so he can   deliver the coffin to the Morgue.  Coffins may coast up-to 200 KD.

On shipment day, a consular officer will witness the preparation and placing of the remains into the casket and wax seal the shipping container.  The airway bill and Preventive Medicine Department’s letter will be attached to the exterior of the shipping container, and the name of the deceased will be written both in Arabic and English, airway bill stickers will place and copy of the preventive medicine clearance letter.

Upon concluding this process the legal representative must notify the information desk at Al-Sabah Hospital of the departure time by taking copies of the:

1. Preventive Medicine clearance letter;
2. Airway bill; and
3. Kuwaiti official death certificate.

Please note: The legal representative must remind the information desk at Al-Sabah Hospital 3 hours before flight take-off to arrange transfer to the airport of the remains.

Since the Morgue does not embalm remains, the Embassy advises families to avoid being present at the Funeral home when the shipping container is opened.

The shipping company must now clear the remains and paperwork through Kuwaiti customs.  Therefore, after sealing the coffin the legal representative must deliver the shipping company the originals of:

1. U.S. Consular Mortuary Certificate;
2. Kuwaiti official death certificate with English translation;
3. Preventive Medicine certificate with English translation;
4. Airway bill; and
5. Canceled original U.S. passport.

During this Kuwaiti customs clearance the Immigration desk at the Airport will cancel the valid residency.

Remember to keep copies of every original document.

In the event of death in a hospital, the hospital will provide the report of death (known as: pink sheet) for the Vital Records Office of the Ministry of Health to issue the official Kuwaiti death certificate.

The Embassy will issue the legal representative the necessary authorization letters required by the Kuwaiti authorities, and procedures continue as noted above.  The above procedures may take several days to complete.

Embalming and Cremation

It is against Islamic customs and law to embalm or cremate remains; these services are not available in Kuwait.  Although remains are refrigerated, significant deterioration should be expected – so it is important to act quickly. 

Burial in Kuwait

Burial may take place in Kuwait of but still requires a burial permit and an official report of death or official death certificate.