It is a scenario no one wants to contemplate, but there is a chance someone close to you could suddenly die due to an accident or natural causes. Here is some general guidance about what to do in that situation.
You can arrange a traditional funeral with the assistance of your local funeral home, where staff are experienced at guiding grieving families through the process. Alternatively, you can make all the arrangements yourself. For advice, consult the Bereavement Authority of Ontario’s Guide to Death Care in Ontario for general information when making arrangements. This informative guide covers all aspects of what happens after someone dies and is a good reference even for those who choose a traditional funeral.
One of the first choices you will have to make is how to handle the body: burial, cremation or alkaline hydrolysis (AH). With AH, a heated solution of water and potassium hydroxide or sodium hydroxide, along with pressure and agitation, reduces a body to components of liquid and bone. The resulting bone fragments are dried and reduced to a substance resembling cremated ashes.
The death must be registered by completing two documents. A Medical Certificate of Death completed by the attending doctor or a coroner outlines the cause. A Statement of Death must also be completed that details personal information about the deceased, such as family history, age at death and place of death. This is usually completed by the funeral director, in consultation with a family member.
The documents are submitted to the municipal clerk’s office, usually in the municipality where the death occurred.
You will need to get a burial permit in the municipality where you register the death. This permit is needed before funeral services can be performed, including cremation or AH.
If the death occurred outside Ontario but the burial will take place in the province, you will need a burial, transit or removal permit from the jurisdiction where the death occurred.
Another important document is a death certificate. The estate trustee will need this to settle the estate and to deal with government services. This certificate can be obtained online, with more information here.
You may already know if the person had a will, which in many cases bequests everything to the surviving spouse. If you do not know if there is a will, contact the estates division of the local Ontario court.
Private institutions – banks, insurance companies, pension funds – have to be contacted to inform them of the death, along with governmental organizations. If the deceased had been issued an accessible parking permit, you have 30 days to return that by mail to ServiceOntario.
If there is a provincial driver’s licence it must be cancelled. You can apply for a refund if there are six months or more remaining on the licence before it expires, as long as there are no outstanding fines. This can be done at any ServiceOntario centre.
Federal agencies must be contacted. That would include cancelling any benefit paid out through Old Age Security, Canada Pension Plan or Employment Insurance. Be sure to be in touch with the Canada Revenue Agency and provide them with the deceased’s social insurance number, so that any outstanding taxes can be paid or that any benefits can be transferred to a survivor. If the deceased owed money to the National Student Loans Service centre, that debt will be forgiven.
The executor of the estate is also responsible for filing an income tax form on behalf of the deceased person and contacting the Family Responsibility Office if the deceased paid child or spousal support.
For more details about the responsibility to notify federal government services click here. More information about similar responsibilities you have to the Ontario government can be found here.
The death of a loved one can be devastating, but the resources listed above should help you get through it.
Take care and have a great day.