Applying for the funeral allowance: what the service does

A family can file the funeral allowance application itself — it is not complicated, and on the latvija.gov.lv portal it takes about fifteen minutes. But in the week after a death there is usually neither the strength nor the time for it, so most families leave the paperwork to the service. This page explains how that works and what stays on the family's side. The amounts and deadlines themselves are collected on the funeral benefit in Riga page.

What the service files on your behalf

In the first conversation we establish the status of the deceased on the day of death — that determines which benefit is due and how large it will be. We then take over the documents: we help register the death at the civil registry office, obtain the death certificate, prepare the VSAA application and submit it. If the family is also entitled to the Riga municipal allowance, we assemble the proof-of-expenses file for the Riga Social Service.

In parallel we plan the funeral so that the costs fit within the benefit, or show exactly what the remaining balance would be. The estimate is fixed before any work begins.

What the family does itself

Two things are needed from the family: a power of attorney so that we may act on your behalf, and the bank account number to which VSAA will transfer the benefit. If the claimant is not a close relative of the deceased, documents showing that they are the one covering the funeral costs are useful too.

One point matters above the rest: the benefit money always goes to the family's account, never to the funeral home. The service can help claim it and can plan the funeral against it, but VSAA pays the benefit to the claimant. If a funeral home offers to "receive the benefit itself", that is not normal practice.

Why not to delay the application

The deadline is six months from the date of death, but there is no reason to wait: the benefit is linked neither to the estate nor to registering a grave site. The application can be filed as soon as the death certificate is issued, and VSAA decides within eight working days. The most common reason families miss the deadline is waiting for the notary to finish.

When a claim is refused

A refusal is almost never about a wrongly filled-in form. The three most common reasons we see in Riga:

• the status of the deceased. On the day of death the person was neither employed, nor a pension recipient, nor registered unemployed — VSAA then pays nothing, and the claim has to go to the Riga municipality instead;
• a missed deadline. Six months after the date of death the entitlement lapses, and it is not restored even for a good reason;
• lost proof of expenses. This affects the municipal allowance: without original invoices the money is not reimbursed.

A VSAA decision can be contested within a month by applying to the agency's director, but in the first case contesting will not help — a different route is needed there.

If you are unsure which benefit applies in your case, tell our duty specialist the status of the deceased and their registered address — you will have the answer in the same call. Call +371 2208 4540.