After a death in the family
Where and within how many days to register a death in Andhra Pradesh, and how to get the death certificate and the family member certificate.
About this guidePending verification
Published on 12-11-2026. Not every fact has been checked against its official source yet: confirm at the office.
For whom: Families in Andhra Pradesh who have lost someone.
In an emergency, call at once
112Emergency helpline (police)108Ambulance100PoliceAnswer the questions below first. Then the documents and steps open.
1Your situation
We show only what your answers need.
- Is the death registered already?
- Where did the death happen?
- How long ago did the person die?
- Do you need a family member certificate?
Your answers stay on this phone.
Each step below says who it is for. Confirm yours at the office, then change your answer here.
2Documents you need
Tick the ones you have. They are kept in this browser.
Details
Only if a doctor treated the person in their last illness
If you don't have it: The doctor who treated the person must give it at once, free of charge.
Sources: 4, 8
Details
If you don't have it: Ask at the registrar's office. If you give the details orally, the registrar fills in the form and takes your signature or thumb mark. The form asks for the deceased's name, date of birth or age, Aadhaar number if available, the names of the mother, father and husband or wife, the address at death and the permanent address, and your own name, address and Aadhaar number if available; take these details with you.
Sources: 8, 4
Details
If you don't have it: The form is in the Andhra Pradesh Registration of Births and Deaths Rules, 2025. In it you write the date and place of death, the reason for the delay and other details, and sign it (or give your thumb mark).
Sources: 8
Details
Issued by the gram panchayat or municipality, saying the death is not in the register
Sources: 13, 8
Details
Sources: 13
Details
Not confirmed: The district page does not say whether it must be on stamp paper or notarised. Ask at the MeeSeva centre.
Sources: 13
Details
Sources: 14
Details
Sources: 15
Details
Not confirmed: The order does not say original or copy. Take both.
Sources: 15, 14
Details
Any one of: ration card, voter ID card (EPIC), passport, passbook, Aadhaar card and the like
Not confirmed: The order does not say original or copy. Take both.
Sources: 15, 14
Nothing to get ready before these steps.
- Medical certificate of the cause of death (from the doctor) ·
- Non-availability certificate ·
- Death certificate ·
3Your steps
· Do them in order. Tick each one when it is done.
- Do this nowIf: We do not knowIf: 31 days to one year / One to two years / More than two years
Ask the registrar for the place of death to search the register: ₹50 for the first year searched, ₹25 for each further year.
If the death is there, ask for a copy of the certificate (₹50); it need not be registered again. If the death is not there, the registrar gives a non-availability certificate (₹50).
Sources: 8
- Do this nowIf: In a hospital or health centreIf: Within 21 days
When the death is in a hospital, the hospital must report it to the registrar.
You do not need to report it yourself.
Sources: 3, 6
- Do this nowIf: In a hospital or health centreIf: 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year / One to two years / More than two years
If the hospital did not report the death, ask its medical officer in charge to report it now: the duty is the hospital's, not the family's.
The late fees, the District Registrar's permission (after 30 days) and the magistrate's order (after one year; the court after two) apply in the same way.
Not confirmed
No source says whether the family can itself apply for the order when the hospital has not reported. Ask the registrar for the place where the hospital stands.
Sources: 3, 6, 8, 5
- Do this nowIf: In a hospital or health centre
The hospital must give the nearest relative a copy of the medical certificate of the cause of death, free.
Ask for it.
Sources: 4, 8
- Do this nowIf: In a hospital or health centreIf: Within 21 days / 22 to 30 days
Within 30 days of the death, the nearest relative can collect the death certificate from the hospital.
The first certificate is free. In government hospitals, community health centres (CHCs) and primary health centres (PHCs), the registrar is in the hospital itself. If you do not collect it, it must be sent to you by post. A private hospital reports the death to the registrar for the area where the hospital stands (municipality or gram panchayat); later copies come from that office.
Sources: 8, 4, 9, 6
- Do this nowIf: Somewhere else (on the road, in a vehicle, in a lodge or hostel)
In a lodge, hostel or choultry the person in charge must report the death; in a moving vehicle, the person in charge of the vehicle, at the first halt; for a body found in a public place, the village headman or the corresponding village officer in a village, and the officer in charge of the local police station elsewhere; in any other place, where an inquest is held, the officer who holds it.
Ask them, and the registrar for that place, whether it has been reported.
Sources: 3, 8
- Do this nowIf: Somewhere else (on the road, in a vehicle, in a lodge or hostel)If: 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year / One to two years / More than two years
If the death was not reported in time, it can still be registered: the late fees, the District Registrar's permission (after 30 days) and the magistrate's order (after one year; the court after two) apply in the same way.
Not confirmed
No source says whether the family can itself report such a death or apply for the order. Ask the registrar for the place where the death happened.
Sources: 8, 6, 5
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: Within 21 days / 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year
When the death is at home, the head of the household must report it.
If they are not there, the nearest relative present does it; if no one else, the oldest adult present.
Sources: 3, 4, 6, 8
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: Within 21 days / 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year
If a doctor treated the person in their last illness, the doctor must give you the medical certificate of the cause of death at once, free.
Hand it to the registrar when you report the death.
Sources: 4, 8
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: Within 21 days
Go to the gram panchayat office (in a village) or the municipal office (in a town; in a city, the municipal corporation's office) and register the death.
Go to the office for the place where the death happened, even if the family lives elsewhere. Give the details in the death report (Form No. 2) and sign it (or give your thumb mark if you cannot write). Hand in the doctor's certificate of the cause of death, if there is one.
Not confirmed
The 2025 Rules ask only for the death report (Form No. 2) and, where a doctor attended, the doctor's certificate; an older district page (2019) also speaks of a panchanama by the police or a Revenue officer. If the office asks for one, ask there who makes it.
Sources: 8, 4, 3, 6, 13, 12
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year
Go to the gram panchayat office (in a village) or the municipal office (in a town; in a city, the municipal corporation's office) and register the death.
Go to the office for the place where the death happened, even if the family lives elsewhere. It can still be registered after 21 days, with a late fee (next step). Give the details in the death report (Form No. 2) and sign it.
Not confirmed
The 2025 Rules ask only for the death report (Form No. 2) and, where a doctor attended, the doctor's certificate; an older district page (2019) also speaks of a panchanama by the police or a Revenue officer. If the office asks for one, ask there who makes it.
Sources: 8, 4, 6, 13, 12
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: 22 to 30 days
If you report between 22 and 30 days, pay the ₹25 late fee to the registrar who registers the death.
Ask for a receipt.
Sources: 8, 3
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: 31 days to one year
After 30 days and within one year, you need the written permission of the District Registrar (the District Medical and Health Officer, DM&HO) or the Statistical Officer in that office.
In Greater Visakhapatnam, the District Registrar is the GVMC Commissioner. Hand in Form No. 14 and pay a late fee of ₹250.
Not confirmed
The rules do not say how to apply for the permission, or whether Form No. 14 and the ₹250 are handed in at the registrar's office or the District Registrar's. Ask the registrar for your area first.
Sources: 8, 4, 10, 11
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: Within 21 days / 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year
Another way: sign up on the CRS portal as "General Public" and report the death online.
The portal says it is open for deaths in Andhra Pradesh. One user can submit at most four events in all.
Open the official pageSources: 7
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: Within 21 days / 22 to 30 days / 31 days to one year
When the registration is done, collect the death certificate.
The first certificate is free for the person who reported the death. The registrar must give it within 7 days of the registration, and may give it electronically.
Sources: 4, 8, 6
- Do this nowIf: NoIf: At homeIf: One to two years / More than two years
Get the non-availability certificate, which says the death is not in the register.
For a death in a town, you can also apply at a secretariat with the "NON AVAILABILITY DEATH APPLICATION - CDMA" service.
Not confirmed
We found no official document on whether the secretariat adds its own service charge. Ask there and keep the receipt.
Sources: 8, 13, 12
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: One to two years
Apply at a MeeSeva centre, or at a village or ward secretariat, with the "Late Registration Of Death/Birth" service (a Revenue Department service).
Hand in the non-availability certificate, a copy of the ration card and a self-affidavit.
Not confirmed
The charter page carries no date. The secretariat's charge, and where the ₹500 late fee is paid, are not confirmed. Ask at the centre and keep the receipt.
Sources: 13, 12, 18, 8, 20
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: One to two years
Wait for the District Magistrate, the Sub-Divisional Magistrate or an Executive Magistrate authorised by the District Magistrate (not below the rank of Revenue Divisional Officer) to check the death and issue the order.
Sources: 5, 8
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: More than two years
For a death more than two years ago, since 1 October 2026 registration needs an order of the Judicial Magistrate of the first class for the place of death.
The magistrate checks the death and issues the order. A prescribed fee is payable for the registration.
Not confirmed
Andhra Pradesh's rules (February 2026) were made before this change: they still send every registration after one year to the Revenue magistrates, with a ₹500 late fee. Up to 30 October 2026 we found no Andhra Pradesh order on how to apply to the court, or the fee. Ask at a MeeSeva centre, the Revenue Divisional Officer's office or the District Legal Services Authority. No official source says which papers the court asks for; the non-availability certificate shows the death is not registered.
Sources: 5, 8
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: One to two years
Once the order is issued, collect the death certificate from the gram panchayat or municipality.
Sources: 13
- Do this nowIf: At homeIf: More than two years
Once the court gives the order, take it to the registrar for the place of death (gram panchayat or municipality) so that the death is registered, and collect the death certificate.
Not confirmed
The rules do not say how the court's order reaches the registrar. Ask at the court.
Sources: 5, 8, 13
- Do this nowIf: No / We do not know
If you need more copies, ask at the office where the death was registered.
Each certificate costs ₹50. For a death in a town, you can also get it at a secretariat with the "Issue of Death Certificate of Already Registered - CDMA" service. No certificate shows the cause of death.
Not confirmed
We found no official document on whether the secretariat adds its own service charge. Ask there and keep the receipt.
Sources: 3, 4, 6, 8, 12
- Do this nowIf: Yes, we have or had the death certificate
For further copies, ask at the office where the death was registered: the registrar for the place where the death happened, not for where the family lives.
Each certificate costs ₹50; a search of the register costs ₹50 for the first year searched and ₹25 for each further year. For a death in a town, you can also get it at a secretariat with the "Issue of Death Certificate of Already Registered - CDMA" service. No certificate shows the cause of death.
Not confirmed
The rules do not say whether the search fee is taken with every copy, and we found no official document on whether the secretariat adds its own service charge. Ask there and keep the receipt.
Sources: 3, 4, 6, 8, 12
- Do this now
Keep the death certificate safe.
It is needed to inherit property and to claim dues from insurance and other companies.
Sources: 6
- Do this nowIf: Yes (for a pension, insurance, PF or a government scheme)
If you need a family member certificate for a pension, gratuity, insurance, PF, compassionate benefits or a government scheme, apply at a MeeSeva centre, or at a village or ward secretariat, with the "Family Member Certificate" service.
Hand in the application form, the notarised affidavit, the death certificate and a document that shows your relationship with the deceased. The Tahsildar issues it.
Not confirmed
The secretariat’s charge is not confirmed: ask before you pay and keep the receipt. The same charter shows this service as 10 days, Category B; the order’s own limit is the 15 days above. The charter page carries no date.
Sources: 15, 14, 12, 18, 20
- Do this nowIf: Yes (for a pension, insurance, PF or a government scheme)
The Tahsildar publishes a 7-day notice in the village or ward.
After that, the Tahsildar or an officer they send makes an enquiry and records a panchanama. If another family member objects in writing, the certificate is not issued.
Sources: 15
- Do this nowIf: Yes (for a pension, insurance, PF or a government scheme)
When you get the certificate, check it: it must list each family member's name, relationship, age, gender, marital status and Aadhaar (or Aadhaar enrolment) number, and the deceased's Aadhaar number if available.
It is not a legal heir certificate and cannot replace one in civil court matters.
Sources: 15, 16, 17
- Do this now
If you need legal help, for example about property, inheritance or a legal heir certificate, contact your District Legal Services Authority (DLSA).
Legal aid is free for the weaker sections of society. Legal services helpline: 15100.
Sources: 19
If something goes wrong
If it is rejectedIf the registrar refuses the registration or the certificate, you can appeal to the District Registrar within 30 days in Form No.
If the registrar refuses the registration or the certificate, you can appeal to the District Registrar within 30 days in Form No. 15 (section 25A of the Act). The District Registrar is the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO); in Greater Visakhapatnam, the GVMC Commissioner. The appeal must be decided within 90 days. Against that decision, you can appeal within 30 days to the Chief Registrar: the Director of Public Health and Family Welfare, Andhra Pradesh, Vijayawada. Keep a copy of the appeal form.
District Registrar (births and deaths): the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO)
Sources: 4, 6, 8, 10, 11
If it is lateIf the certificate does not come within 7 days of the registration, ask the registrar for it: the Act makes the registrar give it within 7 days, and if you have not collected it within 30 days of reporting it must be posted within 15 days after that.
If the certificate does not come within 7 days of the registration, ask the registrar for it: the Act makes the registrar give it within 7 days, and if you have not collected it within 30 days of reporting it must be posted within 15 days after that. If the registrar refuses, you can appeal to the District Registrar within 30 days in Form No. 15.
District Registrar (births and deaths): the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO)
Sources: 4, 8, 10
If it is lateBy the rules you can collect the certificate from the hospital within 30 days of the death; if you do not, it must be posted within 15 days after that.
By the rules you can collect the certificate from the hospital within 30 days of the death; if you do not, it must be posted within 15 days after that. If it still has not come, ask the hospital and the registrar. If the registrar refuses, you can appeal to the District Registrar within 30 days in Form No. 15.
District Registrar (births and deaths): the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO)
Sources: 8, 4, 10
If you are asked for more moneyRegistration within 21 days is free; the first certificate is free for the person who reported the death; the doctor's certificate of the cause of death is free.
Registration within 21 days is free; the first certificate is free for the person who reported the death; the doctor's certificate of the cause of death is free. The fees under the rules: late fee ₹25 (22–30 days), ₹250 (31 days to a year), ₹500 (after a year); ₹50 for each further certificate or a non-availability certificate; a search of the register costs ₹50 for the first year searched and ₹25 for each further year. MeeSeva’s user charge for late registration and for the family member certificate is ₹50 (the MeeSeva portal’s citizen charter), plus up to ₹5 a page for scanning after four pages, shown on the receipt. If the registrar's office asks for more than these, you can appeal to the District Registrar within 30 days in Form No. 15. Do not pay agents.
District Registrar (births and deaths): the District Medical and Health Officer (DM&HO)
Sources: 6, 4, 8, 18, 20
If it is lateIf there is no decision on the family member certificate within 15 days, ask at the Tahsildar's office with your MeeSeva application number.
If there is no decision on the family member certificate within 15 days, ask at the Tahsildar's office with your MeeSeva application number.
Tahsildar's office
Sources: 15
If it is rejectedIf the Tahsildar rejects the family member certificate, ask for the order in writing, with the reasons.
If the Tahsildar rejects the family member certificate, ask for the order in writing, with the reasons.
Tahsildar's office
Sources: 15
Official websites for this work
- Births and deaths (CRS) Birth and death certificates
Related guides
The 20 official pages and papers this guide is written from
- Andhra Pradesh State Police Services: citizen portal home pageAndhra Pradesh Police (Government of Andhra Pradesh), citizen services portal, Page header "Emergency Helpline 112" (te "అత్యవసర హెల్ప్లైన్ 112"; text served from the portal's files /i18n/en.json and /i18n/te.json, key header.emergencyHelpline) · read on 30-10-2026
- HelplineGuntur District Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Police 100; Fire 101; Ambulance 108; State Call Centre 1902 · read on 30-10-2026
- The Registration of Births and Deaths Act, 1969 (Act No. 18 of 1969), text before the 2023 amendmentOffice of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India (text of the Act as passed by Parliament), Sections 8(1)(a)-(b) and (d)-(e), 13(1), 17(1) (31-05-1969) · read on 30-10-2026
- The Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2023 (No. 20 of 2023), Gazette of India Extraordinary, Part II, Section 1, No. 23Ministry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department), Government of India; Gazette copy published by the Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India, Sections 6 (s. 7(2): births and deaths "which has taken place in his jurisdiction"), 7 (s. 8(1)), 8 (s. 10(2)-(3)), 10 (new s. 12), 11 (s. 13(2)-(3)), 13 (s. 17(1)(b) and its proviso), 17 (new s. 25A) (11-08-2023) · read on 30-10-2026
- The Registration of Births and Deaths (Amendment) Act, 2026 (12 of 2026), with notification S.O. 5081(E) of 16 September 2026 bringing it into forceMinistry of Law and Justice (Legislative Department) and Ministry of Home Affairs (Office of the Registrar General of India), Government of India; Gazette copies on the Civil Registration System portal, Section 2 (new s. 13(3) and 13(3A)); S.O. 5081(E): in force from 1 October 2026 (06-08-2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- Civil Registration System: frequently asked questionsOffice of the Registrar General of India, Civil Registration System, Questions 1-6, 8 and 12 · read on 30-10-2026
- Civil Registration System portalOffice of the Registrar General of India, Portal notice (in the portal's main script): "The portal is open for registration of birth and death events that occurred in the States/UTs of" … "Andhra Pradesh" …; General Public notice: "A General Public user is permitted to submit a maximum of four events in total." · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.28, 17.02.2026: Andhra Pradesh Registration of Births and Deaths Rules, 2025, notificationHealth, Medical and Family Welfare (E) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Rules 1 (in force from 17.02.2026; the 1999 Rules repealed), 5(1) and 5(3), 6(1) and Explanation (2), 7, 8(2), 8(4) and 8(5), 9(1)-(3), 13(1), 13(3), 16A; Form No. 2 (Death Report, items 1 to 10); Form No. 4 ("A copy of this certificate to be provided to the nearest relative of the deceased") and 4A; Form No. 14; Form No. 15 (note 2) (17-02-2026) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.19, 08.03.2016: opening of registration units of the Civil Registration System at delivery centres (Government hospitals, CHCs and PHCs)Health, Medical and Family Welfare (E2) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Paragraph 1 (registration centres at Government delivery centres so that the public get birth and death certificates on the spot; private hospital staff cannot act as registrars); paragraph 2 and its table (the officer appointed as Registrar: CS RMO in teaching and general hospitals, surgeon in charge in area and district hospitals, medical officer in charge in PHCs) (08-03-2016) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.152, 04.12.2024: reconstitution of the Inter Departmental Co-ordination Committee on Vital Statistics at district, mandal and municipal corporation levelHealth, Medical and Family Welfare (E1) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Paragraph 3(a), item 2: "District Medical and Health Officer and District Registrar of Births and Deaths"; item 11: Statistical Officer, O/o DM&HO; paragraph 7 and address list: "The Director of Public Health and Family Welfare and Chief Registrar of Births and Deaths, Vijayawada" (04-12-2024) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.72, 26.03.2010: appointment of the Commissioner, Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation as District Registrar of Births and Deaths for the GVMC areaHealth, Medical and Family Welfare (D1) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Notification, items 1 to 4 (26-03-2010) · read on 30-10-2026
- GSWS (Village Secretariat & Ward Secretariat System)Anakapalli District Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Common job chart of the Village Secretariat ("The office of Gram Panchayat will be termed as 'Village Secretariat'"); table "AP SEVA Services Details From Village and Ward Secretariats": rows 66 "BIRTH/DEATH CERTIFICATE - CDMA", 68 "CDMA DEATH Cert Request", 73 "CORRECTIONS IN DEATH CERTIFICATE - CDMA", 76 "Issue of Death Certificate of Already Registered - CDMA", 82 "NON AVAILABILITY DEATH APPLICATION - CDMA" (Municipal Administration and Urban Development); 104 "Family Member Certificate", 105 "Family Member Certificate-Meeseva", 127 and 128 "Late Registration Of Death/Birth" and "-Meeseva" (Revenue) · read on 30-10-2026
- Death Certificate (district services page)Srikakulam District Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh, 1. Death Certificate (apply at the Municipality or Panchayat office with the doctor's certificate "and Panchanama, after formalities done given by the Recognized authorities like Police, Revenue Officer"; registrations within one year); 2. Late Registration of Death (MeeSeva; documents: non-availability certificate from the gram panchayat or municipality, ration card copy, self-affidavit; Category B; after the Revenue Department's order, collect the certificate from the municipality or gram panchayat) · read on 30-10-2026
- Legal heir Certificate (district services page: Family Membership Certificate)Srikakulam District Administration, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Whole page: the Tahsildar issues it; two kinds (for Government employees: pension, gratuity, insurance, provident fund, compassionate benefit; for social security schemes: relief funds, housing, ex gratia); documents: application form, ration card / EPIC card / Aadhaar card, death certificate; through a MeeSeva centre · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.145, 25.04.2015: issue of Family Member Certificates to Government employees and the general public, for all purposes, by the Tahsildars: instructionsRevenue (Services-II) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Paragraph 3, Procedure (i) to (viii) and Precautions 1 and 2 (25-04-2015) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.237, 30.06.2015: Family Members Certificate, amendment to para 3(iii) of G.O.Ms.No.145 (Aadhaar or Aadhaar enrolment number)Revenue (Services-II) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Amendment; Annexure (model certificate, notes 1 and 2) (30-06-2015) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.200, 12.06.2017: revised format of the Family Members Certificate (gender column added)Revenue (Services-II) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Paragraph 3; Annexure (model certificate: name, relation, age, gender, marital status, Aadhaar or enrolment number) (12-06-2017) · read on 30-10-2026
- G.O.Ms.No.17, 06.03.2019: MeeSeva scanning charges, up to Rs.5 a page beyond four pagesInformation Technology, Electronics & Communications (eGov) Department, Government of Andhra Pradesh (A.P. Government Orders Issue Register), Paragraph 1 (Category A across the counter; Category B with a workflow by the department's officer); paragraphs 2 and 4 (scanning up to four pages free; up to Rs.5 a page after that, shown on the MeeSeva receipt) (06-03-2019) · read on 30-10-2026
- Andhra Pradesh State Legal Services Authority: home pageAndhra Pradesh State Legal Services Authority, "About APSLSA" (free legal aid to the marginalised and weaker sections; District Legal Services Authorities and Mandal Legal Services Committees); header link "NALSA Helpline Number 15100" · read on 30-10-2026
- Meeseva G2C Citizen Charter (the portal's own list of services, with no "last updated" date; read from the copy saved on 5 November 2026)MeeSeva (Electronic Services Delivery), Government of Andhra Pradesh: the Andhra Pradesh MeeSeva portal, Revenue rows 98 ("FAMILY MEMBER CERTIFICATE": "10 Days, CAT B", user charges "50 /-", statutory charges "Nil", Tahsildar) and 105 ("LATE REGISTRATION OF DEATH": "30 Days, CAT B", user charges "50 /-"; its statutory charges column, from 2012, is not used: the 2026 Rules set the late fee) · read on 05-11-2026