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What the law says in Austria

8 rules

Anzeige des Todes at the Standesamt

The death must be reported to the Standesamt of the place of death at the latest on the next working day. The hospital head or the examining doctor is first in the order of duty, and the funeral company can usually do it for you. Reporting is free; each death certificate costs €11 plus €2.10 (fees checked 10 October 2026). Personenstandsgesetz 2013, § 28; oesterreich.gv.at, Anzeige des Todesfalls; Todesfall in einer Wohnung; Ausstellung einer Sterbeurkunde

Totenbeschau, prosecutor and autopsy

Every death must be reported at once to the examining doctor (Totenbeschau), usually the municipal doctor, and the body must not be changed before the examination. If a natural death is not certain, the police report to the prosecutor, who can order an autopsy when a crime cannot be ruled out. The body is then usually released a few days after the death. Ask the prosecutor's office early, in writing, for a quick release. oesterreich.gv.at, Totenbeschau; Todesfall in einer Wohnung; Todesfall an einem öffentlichen Ort; Strafprozeßordnung 1975, § 128

Burial times and burial abroad

Burial times are set by each state, and exceptions need separate approval. Upper Austria: after 48 and before 96 hours from the death, or within 10 days if cooled. Lower Austria: within 4 days of the death certificate, or 10 days if cooled. Vienna: the body may be kept in a mortuary or hospital cooling for no more than four weeks; the Islamic Cemetery buries Monday to Friday, 9:00 to 14:30, unless its administration sets another time. Ask the funeral company for your state. oesterreich.gv.at, Bestattung; Oö. LBG § 15; NÖ Bestattungsgesetz 2007, § 11; WLBG § 10; IFH Wien Bestattungsanlagenordnung 2025

Burial times and burial abroad

To bury abroad, the death is first registered, then a licensed funeral company gets a multilingual body passport (Leichenpass), in most states from the district authority of the place of death and in Vienna from the city. Upper Austria requires a soldered metal coffin, or a wooden one with an impermeable lining sealed airtight, for such transport. The destination country's rules decide any further documents. Repatriation can be very expensive: the estate usually pays, or the family if there is no money in it. Ask the funeral company what it costs and who signs before you agree. oesterreich.gv.at, Leichenpass; Todesfall/Bestattung im Ausland; WLBG § 17; Oö. LBG § 23

Coffin, cemetery and graves

The state laws we read require a coffin: Vienna for burial in the earth, and Upper Austria for all burials. The Islamic Cemetery in Vienna uses a simple wooden coffin, does the washing in its own washing room with washers provided by the funeral company, and leases graves for 10 years, renewable for 10. Linz has a Muslim field with a washing room; Altach in Vorarlberg has an Islamic cemetery for Vorarlberg residents. Earth graves are usually leased for 10 years. WLBG § 29; Oö. LBG § 19; IFH Wien Bestattungsanlagenordnung 2025; LINZ AG; Gemeinde Altach (2026); oesterreich.gv.at, Graberwerb

The Verlassenschaftsverfahren and the notary

The Standesamt tells the district court, and a notary acting as the court's commissioner (Gerichtskommissär) invites the family to a first meeting and checks the central register of wills or the lawyers' register. At the end the court hands over the estate in a decision (Einantwortungsbeschluss). Without a will, children inherit equally and a husband or wife takes a third beside them. Children and a spouse left out by a will can claim half of their legal share, so ask the notary how the heirs can follow the Islamic shares. oesterreich.gv.at, Verlassenschaftsverfahren; Gerichtskommissärsgesetz § 1; ABGB §§ 732, 744, 757, 759

Small estates

If the estate has no assets, or assets worth no more than €5,000, and nothing needs entering in the public registers, the estate is not formally administered (Abhandlung) unless someone asks for the procedure to continue. Außerstreitgesetz, § 153

Help with funeral costs

We did not find a general state death grant. Funeral costs are a charge on the estate. If neither the family nor the estate can pay, a social funeral is held, in principle paid by the state or municipality; confirm coverage with the municipality before ordering. If the estate is too small, funeral costs up to €20,000 can be claimed as an extraordinary expense in the payer's tax return. oesterreich.gv.at, Bestattung; Steuerliche Absetzbarkeit von Bestattungskosten; ABGB § 549

From official sources, checked October 2026. Laws change; your funeral company and a notary can confirm them.

Where you are

Austria has one federal law for registering a death and for inheritance, and this guide describes it. Burial law is made by each of the nine states (Bundesländer), so burial times, coffin rules and grave terms differ by state. We name the rules we checked for Vienna, Lower Austria and Upper Austria. For any other state, ask the funeral company (Bestattung) or the municipality.

The steps

1. 1

   Have the death confirmed

   In the first hour · 0 of 5

   Every death must be reported at once to the doctor who examines the dead (Totenbeschau), usually the municipal doctor. The doctor fills in the form “Anzeige des Todes”, which contains the death certificate, and releases the body. Nothing about the body may be changed before then, not even its clothes.

   • In a hospital or care home, the staff arrange the examination
   • At home, call a doctor straight away, or ask a funeral company to arrange it
   • If the death was violent or unexplained, call the police
   • In an emergency, call 144 or 112
   • Tell the staff early that the family needs a quick burial for religious reasons
2. and

   Close the eyes, cover the body, make duʿā

   In the first hour · at the same time as the step above · 0 of 4

   Gently and without hurry. Those present can do this while the calls are made.

   • Close the eyes and the mouth
   • Straighten the arms and legs
   • Cover the body with a clean sheet
   • Pray for them, and say only good
3. 2

   Call the mosque’s funeral service

   In the first few hours · 0 of 4

   Many mosques and Muslim funeral services help with the washing, the shroud, the prayer and the burial, and know which funeral company (Bestattung) to use. Some mosque associations run their own funeral funds.

   • Call the mosque’s funeral service or the imam
   • Tell them where the body is and who the next of kin is
   • If the deceased paid into a funeral fund, call it before you choose a funeral company
   • Agree a time for the ghusl and the janazah prayer
4. 3

   Ask whether the prosecutor is involvedPaperwork

   If the death was sudden or violent · 0 of 3

   If a natural death is not certain, the police call a doctor and report to the public prosecutor (Staatsanwaltschaft). If a crime cannot be ruled out, the prosecutor can order an autopsy (Obduktion) at a forensic medicine institute. The body is usually released only some days later.

   • Ask the police or the doctor where the body has been taken
   • Ask the prosecutor’s office early, in writing, to release the body quickly for religious reasons
   • Contact a funeral company straight away, even while you wait
5. 4

   Register the death at the StandesamtPaperwork

   By the next working day · 0 of 3

   The death must be reported to the civil registry office (Standesamt) of the place of death, at the latest on the next working day. A hospital or the examining doctor usually reports it. The funeral company can also do this for you.

   • Ask the funeral company or the Standesamt which documents they need, such as the form “Anzeige des Todes” and the deceased’s documents
   • If you report it yourself, bring ID, preferably official photo ID
   • If the death was in a hospital or care home, ask the staff to confirm they have reported it
6. 5

   Choose the funeral company and the gravePaperwork

   Within the first day · 0 of 4

   The body must be placed in the coffin by a licensed funeral company (Bestattung), and only licensed companies may move it. Ask what it will handle, what it costs and who signs before you agree. The coffin rules are set by each state. The state laws we read require a coffin, and we have not found a state that allows burial in a shroud alone.

   • Ask the funeral company or the cemetery which Muslim cemetery or Muslim field is near you
   • Ask where the washing can be done, and who may do it
   • Ask how long the grave is leased for, and the renewal fee
   • Ask for a written quote before you agree
7. and

   Wash and shroud the body

   Within the first day · at the same time as the step above · 0 of 2

   Done by trained Muslims of the same sex, or by the spouse. The funeral service usually provides the cloth.

   • Confirm who will wash
   • Confirm the kafan is ready

   How the washing and shroud are done

8. 6

   The janazah prayer and the burial

   As soon as possible · 0 of 4

   The prayer is often held after one of the daily prayers, and the burial follows straight after.

   • Tell family and community the time of the prayer
   • Confirm the grave in a Muslim cemetery or Muslim field
   • Ask the funeral company the earliest and latest time your state allows
   • Ask the cemetery which days and hours it buries

   How to pray the janazah prayer

9. and

   If the burial will be abroadPaperwork

   Before the coffin is closed · at the same time as the step above · 0 of 4

   Many families bury their dead in another country, for example in Türkiye, Bosnia or the Arab world. The death must first be registered at the Standesamt. A licensed funeral company then needs a multilingual body passport (Leichenpass).

   • Tell the funeral company early that the burial will be abroad
   • Call the consulate of the country early: it sets its own documents and conditions
   • Ask the consulate whether it requires embalming
   • Check any funeral fund or insurance first
10. 7

    Get copies of the death certificatePaperwork

    In the first week · 0 of 1

    Banks, insurers and others often ask for a death certificate (Sterbeurkunde) from the Standesamt. Ask each one what proof it needs.

    • Ask any Standesamt for copies, in person or in writing
11. 8

    Pay the funeral costs and list every debt

    In the first weeks · 0 of 3

    The funeral is paid from the estate first, then the debts. Nothing is inherited until both are settled.

    • Pay the funeral costs from the estate
    • List loans, bills and money owed to family
    • Ask a scholar about any unpaid zakat
12. and

    Find the willPaperwork

    In the first weeks · at the same time as the step above · 0 of 3

    You do not start the estate process yourself. The Standesamt tells the district court (Bezirksgericht), and a notary acting for the court (Gerichtskommissär) invites the family to a first meeting (Todesfallaufnahme), usually the person who ordered the funeral.

    • Bring any will you find, and papers about the deceased’s money and debts, to the notary’s meeting
    • Tell the employer, insurers and banks
    • Secure the house and car, and keep the phone line active for sign-in codes
13. 9

    Settle and divide the estatePaperwork

    In the months after · 0 of 4

    The estate is settled in a court procedure (Verlassenschaftsverfahren) run by the notary as the court’s commissioner. At the end the court hands the estate to the heirs in a decision (Einantwortungsbeschluss). Austrian law shares an estate without a will equally between sons and daughters, so dividing by the Islamic shares usually needs a valid will or the heirs’ agreement.

    • Go to the notary’s meeting, or send someone who knows the deceased’s affairs
    • Close accounts and cancel subscriptions
    • Pay any bequest, up to one third, to people who are not heirs
    • Divide the rest by the fixed shares

    See how the estate divides

14. 10

    Look after the family

    Four months and ten days · 0 of 3

    A woman keeps the prescribed mourning (iḥdād: setting aside adornment and perfume) for no more than three days for any death, except for her husband: then four months and ten days, the length of her ʿiddah, or until she gives birth if she is pregnant.

    • Bring food and help with the household
    • Help the widow with errands and appointments
    • Make duʿā for the one who has died

    What to say and do when you visit

15. 11

    Write your own Islamic will

    For those left behind · 0 of 4

    Without a valid will, Austrian law decides who inherits, not the fixed shares, and sons and daughters inherit equally. An Islamic will in Austria is an ordinary Austrian will that directs the estate by the shares, as far as the reserved shares allow.

    • Write it entirely by hand and sign it with your name
    • Add the place and date
    • Ask a notary or lawyer to keep it and register it in the central register of wills
    • Ask a notary how the reserved shares affect the Islamic shares

    Work out the Islamic shares to take to a notary

Settling things after the funeral? Keep track of every task, and who is doing it. Sharing the steps with family? Make a family checklist you send as a link.

General guidance, not a fatwa or legal advice. Burial law in Austria is made by each of the nine states, so burial times, coffin rules and grave terms differ by state; your funeral company and a notary can confirm them. All sources

Last reviewed October 2026. Something wrong? Tell us