What Happens After Someone Dies: The First Weeks

If you are reading this because someone has just died, we are sorry. You do not have to do everything today. Most of what follows can be taken one step at a time, and almost none of it needs to happen in the first few hours except the first few items below.

The first day: only the essentials. If the death was at home and expected, call the person's doctor or the local emergency number so the death can be formally confirmed. If it was unexpected, call emergency services, and expect that the police may need to be involved. A doctor, hospital, or authorised official will confirm the death and give you the paperwork you need for the next step. Then tell the closest family and friends. Ask someone to help you make those calls so you are not doing them all alone.

Arrange the death certificate. This is the document almost everything else depends on. The notification of death is usually issued by the doctor or hospital, and the official death certificate by the relevant government department (in South Africa this is Home Affairs, and other countries have their own equivalent). Ask for several certified copies. Banks, insurers, pension funds, and the property registry will each want one, and many will not accept a photocopy.

Contact a funeral service. They can collect the person, explain the options, and handle much of the paperwork. Before agreeing to anything, check whether the person left wishes (a funeral plan, a note, a prepaid policy). Ask for costs in writing, and do not feel pressured into the most expensive option.

Find the will and identify the executor. Look in the obvious places first: a home safe or file, then the person's lawyer or bank. The will usually names an executor, the person responsible for winding up the estate. In many countries the executor must be formally appointed by a court or official before they can act on the person's accounts, so do not assume a family member can start closing things down straight away.

Do not pay out, close, or transfer accounts yet. Notify the bank and insurers, but expect that accounts will be frozen until the estate is formally administered. Do not spend from the person's accounts or move money informally, however well-meaning. It can create legal and tax problems for you later.

Tell the right institutions, in a sensible order. After the death certificate: the employer, the bank(s), insurers and funeral cover providers, pension or retirement funds, the tax authority, medical aid or health insurer, and anyone the person paid regularly or who paid them. Do not forget the less obvious ones: utilities, phone and internet, vehicle licensing, subscriptions, and any club memberships. Cancel recurring payments that should not continue.

Secure the home and valuables. Make sure the property is locked and insured, and that someone checks on it. If the person lived alone, redirect post and notify the insurer, since a home left empty is often no longer covered in the same way.

Handle the digital side. Email, social media, cloud photos, and subscriptions do not close themselves. Most major platforms have a process for memorialising or closing an account of someone who has died, usually requiring a death certificate. Do not try to guess passwords or log in as the person.

Let the estate process run, and expect it to take time. Winding up an estate usually involves valuing assets, advertising for creditors, settling debts and taxes, and only then distributing what remains. Depending on the country and the complexity, that can take months, and sometimes a year or more. Using a qualified estate lawyer or attorney is strongly recommended, especially if there is property, a business, assets in more than one country, or any disagreement in the family.

Look after yourself, and ask for help. Grief makes simple tasks hard. Write things down, keep a folder of every certificate and letter, and accept practical help when it is offered. If you are the executor, ask for a clear list of what is owed to whom and by when.

What makes all of this easier is preparation by the person who died. When they have recorded where their accounts, policies, and documents are, and named who should receive that information, families can move through these weeks with far less searching. If you are reading this to prepare for the future, that is a good reason to do it now.

This checklist is a planning summary, not a legal document. Bring it to a qualified estate lawyer to formalize.