Social Benefits

The Russian legislation insures mandatory burial for every decedent in case there is no person in charge of funeral as well as in case the relatives wish to bury the decedent in Russia.

A foreign citizen can be buried either at a new plot or at the family plot (provided that the decedent is a relative of the previously buried at the family plot and the person in charge of the family plot consents to the burial).

The Russian legislation envisages the following benefits concerning the funeral procedure for all citizens of Russia:

• funeral allowance
• funeral arrangement free of charge
• new cemetery plot free of charge.

Note that the funeral allowance and the funeral arrangement free of charge are provided solely for the citizens of Russia and are mutually exclusive. That is – the relatives are to choose either variant of government assistance.

As for the cemetery plot – it is allocated free of charge provided that a cemetery has sufficient land for new plots. In this case the relatives or other person in charge pays solely the cost of preparation and performing the burial.

The funeral allowance is paid by the employer if the decedent was officially employed, by the social security department if the decedent was unemployed and was not a retiree and by the Pension Fund if the decedent was a retiree.

The basic set of documents to obtain the funeral allowance includes:

if the decedent was officially employed

• certified death certificate
• certificate according to form 33
• passport of the person applying for the allowance
• allowance application

if the decedent was unemployed

• certified death certificate
• certificate according to form 33
• passport of the person applying for the allowance
• allowance application
• employment record book and its copy.