Duplicate death certificate: how to obtain a replacement document in Ukraine

These documents are sometimes confused, although they take different forms and may be used for different purposes.

A duplicate death certificate reproduces the document in the format prescribed by the state. It is this document that is most often required for inheritance matters, the registration of property rights or submission abroad.

An extract from the State Register of Civil Status Acts contains details of the death registration. It may be requested by relatives, heirs and, under certain conditions, beneficiaries under insurance or inheritance contracts, as well as other parties listed in the rules governing the register.

From a practical point of view, it is best not to assume on your own that ‘an extract will probably suffice’. Before applying, it is worth checking the requirements of the institution to which the document is being submitted.

For example, a notary may be able to work with information from the register as part of a specific procedure, whilst a foreign authority may require a paper certificate with an apostille and a translation. Outwardly, these may appear to be similar confirmations of the same fact, but the legal form is important to the recipient.

The most obvious scenario is when the original has been lost. This can happen during a move, an evacuation, renovation work, the sorting of a family archive, or simply because the documents have not been used for many years.

A replacement is also required if the certificate:

• has been damaged by water, fire or physical impact;
• contains blurred stamps or details;
• is laminated, and the relevant authority refuses to accept it for further processing;
• is in the possession of another heir who is unable or unwilling to hand over the original;
• is required for several procedures at different institutions.

The document is often reissued to open a probate case. The notary must confirm the testator’s death, after which they verify the composition of the estate, the circle of heirs and other circumstances.

The certificate may also be required for the transfer of ownership of property, a vehicle, bank accounts, corporate rights, insurance payouts or social security benefits.

Another major category of requests relates to matters abroad. A Ukrainian document may be requested by a foreign notary, court, bank, pension service, insurance company or civil registry office. In such situations, simply obtaining a duplicate is usually not enough: it is also necessary to check the requirements for an apostille, legalization and translation.

Information on civil status records is not entirely publicly available. Therefore, a certificate will not be issued to a person simply because they know the name of the deceased, the date of death or their address.

A duplicate death certificate may be issued to the surviving spouse and close relatives of the deceased. The applicant must submit documents confirming kinship or family ties.

In practice, the following may apply:

• the husband or wife of the deceased;
• parents;
• children;
• brothers and sisters;
• grandchildren;
• grandfather or grandmother;
• other relatives, provided they can provide documentary evidence of the relevant relationship.

Having the same surname does not in itself prove kinship. Conversely, different surnames do not pose a problem if there are documents explaining the change.

For example, the daughter of the deceased may have a different surname following marriage. To make the relationship clear, she must submit her birth certificate and a marriage certificate or a document confirming the change of name.

For a grandchild, the chain of documentation is usually longer. It is necessary to show who their mother or father is, and then confirm that this person was the child of the deceased. In such cases, a single document is often insufficient.

Yes, documents from the Civil Registry Office can be reissued to a representative under a duly executed power of attorney. This is particularly relevant for people living abroad, those with health problems, or those who are physically unable to visit government offices.

However, there is an important caveat here. A power of attorney does not confer the right to obtain a certificate, but merely allows the representative to act on behalf of a person who already has that right.

Therefore, in addition to the power of attorney, the following may be required:

• a copy of the principal’s passport;
• documents proving their relationship to the deceased;
• the representative’s passport;
• properly worded authorization to submit the application and collect the document.

If the application was submitted via the Diya portal by one person, they must collect the final document in person. Where the intention is to act through an authorized representative, it is more advisable for the representative to submit the application in person at the Civil Registry Office.

For powers of attorney drawn up abroad, the need for an apostille or consular legalization is checked separately. The document is then translated into Ukrainian.

There is no standard set of documents that applies to every applicant without modification. The required documents depend on the degree of kinship, changes to surnames, the method of application and the country in which the documents were issued.

Usually, you will need to provide:

• the applicant’s passport or other passport-equivalent document;
• an application for the reissue of the certificate;
• documents confirming kinship or family relationships;
• documents relating to a change of surname, first name or patronymic;
• a power of attorney, if a representative is acting on your behalf;
• proof of payment of the state fee or entitlement to exemption from it.

It is also advisable to gather as much information as possible about the register entry itself:

• the full name of the deceased;
• date of death;
• place of death;
• the approximate date of state registration;
• the town or village and the Civil Registry Office where the death may have been registered;
• the series and number of the old certificate, if a copy has been retained.

This information is particularly important for older records. When only an approximate date and a common surname are known, the search may take longer.

Sometimes the problem lies not with the death certificate itself, but with the applicant’s documents. For example, in an old certificate the surname is written in Russian, in a modern passport it is in Ukrainian, and in a foreign document it is written in a different language. Yet another variant is used in the Latin alphabet.

It is obvious to the family that this refers to the same person. For a government body, however, this connection must be confirmed by documentary evidence.

The simplest offline method is to contact your nearest Civil Registry Office. It is not necessary to travel to the town or district where the death was registered many years ago: staff can check the entry in the register or submit the necessary request.

An online application can be submitted via the Diya portal. The applicant logs in, fills in the form, chooses to collect the document from a branch or have it delivered by Ukrposhta courier, pays for the service, and signs the application with an electronic signature or a Diya. Signature. The status of the application is displayed in the citizen’s account.

This is a convenient option for standard cases. However, if there are discrepancies in the documents, if kinship needs to be confirmed by several certificates, or if the entry is very old, visiting in person is sometimes more practical. You can present the entire set of documents straight away and find out exactly what is missing.

Ukrainian citizens abroad may contact Ukraine’s diplomatic missions and consular offices. Another option is to draw up a power of attorney for a representative who will handle the procedure in Ukraine.

Firstly, you need to determine who exactly will be submitting the application. This may seem like a minor detail, but the list of required documents depends on who the applicant is.

Sometimes a family plans to arrange everything through someone based in Ukraine, even though that person is not a close relative of the deceased. In such a case, that person is not entitled to receive the certificate themselves, but may act under a power of attorney from a relative who does have that right.

Next, the documents proving kinship are checked. They must form a clear chain with no gaps.

After this, an application is submitted – either online or to the Civil Registry Office. The registration authority verifies the applicant’s entitlement, locates the death record and issues a replacement certificate.

You should check the document you receive straight away. You need to check:

• the spelling of the surname, first name and patronymic;
• the date and place of death;
• the record number;
• the name of the authority that issued the document;
• the clarity of the stamps and other details.

This is particularly important before apostille certification and translation. If an error is discovered after all subsequent stages have been completed, you will have to go back to the start and pay for the relevant services again.

Officially, the standard processing time is one working day. The Diya portal states an estimated processing time of three working days for online applications. Due to air raid alerts, power cuts, the need for further research or inquiries to another region, processing may take longer.

The state fee for reissuing the certificate is 51 kopecks. This amount may seem symbolic, but it should not be equated with the total cost of the application.

Additional charges may apply for:

• postal or courier delivery;
• notarisation of a power of attorney;
• apostille or consular legalization of the power of attorney;
• obtaining interim documents proving kinship;
• translation;
• notarisation of the translation;
• apostille or legalization of the certificate itself;
• international delivery of the completed package.

Therefore, the actual timeframe and budget should be assessed for the entire procedure. The certificate itself can be obtained quickly, but preparing it for a foreign court or notary will take longer.

Old records are one of the most interesting and, at the same time, unpredictable categories of cases.

If the death was registered a long time ago, the information may not be available in the electronic register. This does not mean that the record has disappeared. It may be kept in a paper register, at another local authority office or in a state archive.

Any information will be useful for the search: the old name of the settlement, the district, the approximate year, the place of residence of the deceased, or details of the spouse or parents.

If 75 years have passed since the death was registered and the record has not been updated, Diya recommends contacting the state archive of the relevant region.

In such cases, the result may be an archive certificate, an extract or another document compiled based on the archive collection. Its further use depends on the purpose of the inquiry.

For example, an archive certificate may be sufficient for genealogical research. For inheritance or legal proceedings, you will need to clarify exactly which document a notary or court will accept.

Let’s imagine the following situation: a grandson wishes to obtain his grandmother’s death certificate. His own birth certificate has been preserved, but his mother’s birth certificate has been lost. Formally, there is a missing link between the applicant and the deceased.

In such a case, you must first have the intermediate document restored, and only then apply for the death certificate.

Similar difficulties arise due to:

• a change of surname following marriage;
• multiple marriages and multiple changes of surname;
• adoption;
• different spellings of names in documents from different years;
• the absence of a birth or marriage certificate;
• errors in dates or patronymics.

Sometimes a discrepancy can be explained by an additional document. In other cases, it is necessary to amend the civil registry entry, have it reinstated, or establish a legal fact in court.

This is precisely where rushing to submit an application rarely helps. It is best first to map out the entire chain of documentation on paper and identify any gaps in it.

In this category, a distinction must be made between two scenarios.

First: the death has already been registered by a Ukrainian authority and a death certificate exists. In this case, you can apply for a duplicate certificate through the standard procedure in territory controlled by Ukraine.

Second: there is no Ukrainian death record. In such a situation, it is not possible to obtain a duplicate, as legally there is not yet a Ukrainian death certificate that can be reissued. First, the death must be registered with the state authorities, and only then – if necessary – can a replacement document be obtained.

The ‘Dii’ online service is not directly available in the temporarily occupied territories or in areas of active hostilities.

Each such case requires a separate assessment. The place and date of death, the availability of medical documents, a Ukrainian death certificate and a court ruling are all relevant factors.

If an authority in another country issued the document, the Ukrainian Civil Registry Office cannot usually issue a duplicate. A duplicate must be requested from the country where the registration took place.

This raises the question of using a foreign document in Ukraine. Depending on the issuing country, the following may be required:

• an apostille;
• consular legalization;
• an official translation into Ukrainian;
• notarisation of the translation.

In certain cases, an international treaty permits the use of documents without an apostille or full legalization. It is therefore risky to rely solely on the general principle – it is necessary to check the specific document handling procedures between the two countries.

A different situation arises if a Ukrainian consulate registered the death of a Ukrainian citizen. In that case, the information forms part of the Ukrainian civil registry system, and the procedure for obtaining the document will be different.

The country of submission is the first question you need to ask before starting the process. The second is the name of the authority that will accept the document.

For countries that apply the 1961 Hague Convention, Ukrainian official documents are usually certified with an apostille. A document bearing an apostille does not require further consular legalization in a country where the relevant regime applies.

For countries with which the apostille is not applicable, consular legalization may be required. However, an international treaty may sometimes waive the requirement for additional certification.

The order in which the formalities are carried out is also important. Most often, a duplicate certificate is obtained first, then the apostille is affixed, and only after that is the document translated together with the text of the apostille.

However, this is not a universal rule. A foreign authority may require:

• a notarised translation carried out in Ukraine;
• a translation by a sworn translator in the country of submission;
• a translation of the Ukrainian document together with the apostille;
• additional certification of the translator’s signature;
• a separate translation of documents proving kinship.

Transliteration requires particular attention. It is advisable to ensure that the name of the deceased in the translation matches that on their foreign passport, foreign identity card, will, bank documents or other case files.

Mechanical transliteration according to general rules sometimes results in a new spelling that does not appear in any foreign document. As a result, the authority may request further clarification.

The official grounds for refusal are the applicant’s lack of entitlement to a replacement certificate and the absence of proof of payment of the state fee or a document confirming exemption from it.

In practice, a refusal or delay is often due to the applicant’s entitlement not being verified by documentary evidence.

For example:

• no certificate has been submitted to confirm one of the family relationships;
• the power of attorney does not contain the necessary authorizations;
• the documents contain different surnames, but there is no confirmation of a change of surname;
• an incorrect date or place of death has been stated;
• the applicant has applied for a duplicate certificate, even though the record has already been transferred to the archive;
• the Ukrainian civil registry record does not exist at all.

The state registrar must state the reason for the refusal. If the deficiency can be rectified, the application must be resubmitted. The Diya portal states that once the deficiencies have been rectified, there is no need to pay for the service again.

If the applicant considers the decision to be unjustified, they may lodge an administrative appeal with the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine or seek legal redress through the courts.

Working with such documents does not begin with the translation. First, it is necessary to understand which document is required, who is entitled to receive it, and whether there is sufficient supporting evidence.

The specialists at the STATUS KO Translation Center analyze the client’s situation and help to establish the correct sequence of procedures.

Depending on the circumstances, we can:

• verify documents proving family relationships;
• identify which certificates or extracts are missing;
• help draft the terms of a power of attorney;
• arrange for a replacement document to be obtained through a representative;
• prepare a foreign power of attorney for use in Ukraine;
• translate documents;
• arrange for apostille certification or consular legalization;
• prepare a package of documents for a specific foreign institution;
• deliver the processed documents to the client in Ukraine or abroad.

We clarify the country and purpose of submission separately. This helps to avoid a situation where a client first orders a translation, then realizes an apostille is required, and after obtaining the apostille is forced to have the document translated again.

Comprehensive support is particularly useful when the applicant is outside Ukraine, the record was created a long time ago, or kinship has to be confirmed by several documents.

Yes. You can contact the nearest available Civil Registry Office. If the record is held in another region or has not been entered into the electronic register, an additional request may be required.

Yes, provided they can prove their relationship. This usually requires documents that establish a direct link between the grandchild, their mother or father, and the deceased person.

Yes. The reissue process is specifically designed for situations where the previous document has been lost, damaged, or destroyed. The certificate is issued based on the civil registry entry.

Yes. You can contact a Ukrainian consular office or draw up a power of attorney for a representative in Ukraine. The specific option depends on the country you are in, the timeframe, and the intended use of the document.

No. It depends on the country to which the document is being submitted, international treaties, and the requirements of the specific authority. Sometimes an apostille is required, sometimes consular legalization, and in some cases no additional certification is required at all.

First, you need to determine exactly where the discrepancy lies: in the certificate, the birth record, the passport or the translation. Depending on the situation, you may need a document confirming a change of name, an amendment to the birth record or another legal procedure.

You should start the process by checking the situation.

It is often possible to obtain a replacement death certificate without lengthy red tape. However, the standard procedure ceases to be standard as soon as an old record, a foreign power of attorney, a missing document proving kinship, or requirements from a foreign authority come into play.

In such cases, time is most often lost not at the Civil Registry Office itself, but due to an incorrectly chosen course of action.

Contact the STATUS KO Translation Center for an initial consultation. We will review your documents, determine the best way to obtain a replacement certificate, and prepare it for use in Ukraine or abroad.