Death certificate

• The person died in The Hague.
• Did the person die outside of the Netherlands? You can register a foreign death certificate with the Registry Office of the Municipality of The Hague. You can then request a copy or extract.

• You can only request a certificate if:

  • you are the child or grandchild
  • you are the parent or grandparent
  • you are a beneficiary
  • you are the spouse or registered partner
  • you are the legal representative
  • you need the certificate for a legal procedure
  • you need the certificate for a marriage or registered partnership
  • you received written authorisation (power of attorney)

An authority asks for a death certificate. You request this in the municipality where the person died. You will then get a copy or a multiple-language (international) extract of the certificate. The original certificate remains the property of the municipality.

Which document do I need?

Usually the authority requiring the certificate will tell you which document you need. It will also indicate how old the document may be. The difference between the copy and the multiple-language (international) extract:

• A copy is exactly the same as the certificate itself. It is also called a certified, official or authenticated copy. The copy is only available in Dutch.
• A multiple-language (international) extract contains a summary of the certificate. The extract has an explanation in 10 languages: Dutch, English, French, German, Spanish, Greek, Italian, Portuguese, Turkish and Serbo-Croatian.

When you apply for the certificate you can indicate which document you would like to have.

€ 15.70 (rate in 2023) excluding postage costs. After you have applied you will receive an invoice by email.

The municipality will send you your copy or multiple-language (international) extract within 3 weeks.

• Would you like to request a certificate for a stillborn child? You can use the Apply for death certificate form on this page.
• Was the death certificate drawn up more than 50 years ago? Then you will need to contact The Hague City Archives.
• If you would like to use the document abroad, then you often need an ‘apostille’. You can request this through the court. Read more about the legalisation of Dutch documents on the website of the Dutch government(External link).
• Do you need to have the document translated? You can have documents from abroad translated into Dutch by a sworn translator. For documents which are needed within the European Union you can request a multilingual standard form along with the document from the Netherlands.

Also see

• Register a death
• Register a foreign certificate
• Request a civil status document for someone else