Death Certificate
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Here you will find information about what a death certificate contains and how you can obtain a copy of a death certificate.
Do you need a confirmation of death?
If relatives need confirmation that a death has occurred, for example in connection with an inheritance settlement, the District Court (Tingretten) should be contacted.
Do you need a death certificate that includes the cause of death?
If the next of kin wants information about the causes of death reported for a deceased person, the doctor who wrote the certificate should preferably be contacted.
If this is not possible, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health can issue a death certificate that includes the medical causes of death. As the closest relative, you have the right to access the Cause of Death Registry, in accordance with the Cause of Death Register Regulation § 5-1, unless there are special reasons against it. The next of kin must request access by filling out the application form below and sending it to the Norwegian Institute of Public Health.
The death certificate contains civil and medical information that the public authorities need to register a death.
Only the next of kin can apply for a death certificate with the cause of death from the Cause of Death Registry. Who is considered the closest relative is defined in the Patient and User Rights Act §1-3 letter b. The Cause of Death Registry is not authorized to provide the police, insurance companies, NAV, or similar entities with a death certificate that includes the cause of death.
The Cause of Death Registry can issue a death certificate to a lawyer or other representative who represents the closest relative according to the Public Administration Act § 12. A representative who is not a lawyer must present a written power of attorney from the next of kin.
If a lawyer/publicly appointed administrator acts on behalf of others who are not the next of kin, a power of attorney from the next of kin must be attached to the application, as the right to access only applies to the next of kin.
If you want access to death notifications from before 1996, you must contact the National Archives (arkivverket.no).
Information about autopsy
The Cause of Death Registry can provide the autopsy number and where the autopsy was performed.
To obtain the autopsy report, relatives must contact the autopsy lab themselves. Note that it can take many months before an autopsy report is completed.
