Death is a unspoken topic, it’s not a happy one. However, death is one certainties of life we will eventually come across be it for yourself or your loved one.

In this article, we will explore the entire process, step by step. The options available and cost estimates for each step of the way.

1 Deciding on a funeral director

Finding a funeral director now can be easily done online with google search. However, the chance of you finding a good, reliable and affordable one is hard to come by unless you do your homework.

1.1 Funeral director / funeral home web page

These are the following to consider when you visit a funeral provider’s web page :

• Poor web page design
• Is it informative?
• Transparent in their package details?

Many unscrupulous funeral directors have poorly designed web page and they provide ridiculously cheap packages. Therefore, a good reliable ones will be informative which directly reflects on how transparent they are.

Check out ours for a comparison : https://funeralsanctuary.sg/

1.2 Call the funeral director

Its always a good practice to call and double confirm what the funeral director promote is exactly the same as advertised online. Additionally, you may also ask about charges not stated on the web page such as the following

• Any service or labour charges? – Ang Paus
• Transportation charges? – Collecting of body to embalming facility and wake venue
• Do they assist you in post-funeral matters?

Our funeral packages list out all package details as such : https://funeralsanctuary.sg/funeral-packages/

2 Obtain a certification of cause of death (CCOD)

Depending on where the death took place, CCOD can be obtained differently.

For death in Hospital please read it from : https://funeralsanctuary.sg/what-to-do-when-death-occur/

2.1 At home

You may call your family doctor or neighborhood GP to certify the death if your funeral director doesn’t provide a doctor. However, if the doctor is unable to certify the cause of death, the body will need to be sent to the mortuary instead. (SGH BLK 9)

Total Cost for this procedures : $200 – 350 est

2.2 Overseas

Death aboard needs to be registered with the relevant authorities in that country. You are then provided with two options :

• Bring the body back to home ground
• Cremate the body aboard and bring back the cremains

If you want to bring back the body, Ministry of Foreign Affairs are able to provide you advice on finding a undertaker in that country and the cost of repatriation. You’ll also need a local funeral director to make all necessary arrangement to receive the body in Singapore.

Cost breakdown :

• Embalming + Coffin = $10,000 and more
• Local Funeral director = $500 and more
• Coffin Import permit = $17.50

Cost vary widely depending on the country of death. You might want to check out our repatriation service at : https://funeralsanctuary.sg/repatriation-service/

3 Register the death

Once the CCOD has been provided you can register the death at any neighborhood police post or over the Citizen Services Centre at ICA building. Additional documents needed :

• CCOD
• Deceased IC or Birth certificate
• Informant’s IC or passport

Once the registration of death is completed, the CCOD will be kept and you’ll be issued a death certificate. These has to be done within 24 hours from death as required by law.

The death certificate is a important document in order to publish a newspaper obituary, funeral, booking of cremation / burial

No fees are applicable at this point

4 Obituary (Optional)

Obituary is a column in the local newspaper to publish the news of a death. It used to be a great way to letting friends and relatives know the details of the wake and funeral. It cost $1,500 onward to place an obituary on the newspaper.

4.1 Digital Obituary

As people are more frequently on social media platform these days, online obituary proves to be a greater alternative to newspapers. In addition, digital obituary can serve as a remembrance as compared to newspapers

The cost of digital obituary vary from different providers. However, at Singapore Funeral Sanctuary, we provide digital obituary and a dedicated memorial page for free

5 Funeral arrangements for the wake

Typically a funeral package covers all essential needs to conduct a funeral. However, there are questions you’ll need to answer :

• Numbers of days for the funeral wake
• Location of the funeral
• Simple funeral arrangements or a more extravagant elaborated funeral arrangement
• Burial or cremation

5.1 Number of days

Typically a funeral tend to last between 3 – 7 days but statistic shows that 3 days funeral are growing in demand. Thus it is becoming the new norm.

In addition, direct funeral package are also a growing demand as everything is done within the same day. However, it varies depending on culture.

Some Chinese funeral follow strict superstition that wakes has to be held only on odd number of days to signify the incomplete cycle of life. Thus, in hope of a reincarnation.

5.2 Location of the funeral wake

whether HDB, private apartment, parlour, there are many factors involving the decision where the wake is to be conducted. Cost-wise it is always cheaper to do it under a HDB void deck & Multi-purpose hall.

5.2.1 HDB Void Deck & Multi-purpose Hall

Aside from the low cost, holding a wake informs the community that a loved one has passed on. This is especially useful for elderly that passed on and may have friends in the community yet unfamiliar to the next of kins.

Funeral packages are usually for 3 days and inclusive of tentage charges. However it is important to know how much you are charged for additional days thereafter. ( usually $250/ additional day)

The only downside is that you can’t lock up the place after hours. Therefore you’ll need someone to always be there to keep vigil. Alternatively a funeral director can recommend a person to help keep vigil at $100 a day.

5.2.2 Private apartment

You’ll require to get permission from the condo management. Otherwise it is the closely similar to HDB void deck.

Cost vary due to tentage size required

5.2.3 Landed property

No permission or permit required unless you’ll need to use part of the road outside your house then a permit from Land Transport Authority (LTA) is needed.

The only downside will be parking. Parking for your guest may seem to be a hassle and poses inconvenience to your surrounding neighbors.

Cost vary due to tentage size required

5.2.4 Parlour

Parlour provides privacy and comfort for bereaved families. However it is more expensive to hold wake in parlours due to parlor rentals fees.

We do provide a selection of parlours available at affordable cost. Please visit https://funeralsanctuary.sg/funeral-parlours-singapore/

6 Caskets

Caskets comes in various designs and made and usually included in a funeral package. You’ll still have to choose a suitable casket for your dearly departed.

Selection of caskets can be done here : https://funeralsanctuary.sg/caskets/

7 Funeral Packages Price 2020

Price vary from company to company as package differs. Therefore we can only provide an estimate price as follows :

• Buddhist Package – $5,000 ~ $6,800
• Taoist Package – $7,300 ~ $8,200
• Christian Package – $3,800 ~ $4,800
• Catholic Package – $3,800 ~ $4,800
• Non-Religious Package – $3,800 ~ $5,000

You may also want to look at our packages with package overview and package details.