State Funeral Benefits Act

Passed 08.11.2000
RT I 2000, 86, 549
Entry into force 01.03.2001

§ 1.  Scope of application of Act

 (1) This Act provides for the conditions of entitlement to state funeral benefits and the procedure for the grant and payment thereof.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) The provisions of the Administrative Procedure Act apply to the administrative proceedings prescribed in this Act, taking account of the specifications provided for in this Act.
[RT I 2002, 61, 375 - entry into force 01.08.2002]

§ 2.  State funeral benefit and right to receive state funeral benefit

 (1) State funeral benefit (hereinafter funeral benefit) is a lump-sum benefit prescribed to cover the expenses of a funeral in the territory of Estonia which is paid upon the death registered in Estonia or outside of Estonia of a permanent resident of Estonia, an alien residing in Estonia on the basis of a temporary residence permit or a temporary right of residence, a person specified in § 130 of the Aliens Act or of a person specified in subsection 30 (3) of the Citizen of European Union Act.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (1¹) The organiser of a funeral specified in clauses 4 (1) 1)–4) of this Act is entitled to receive funeral benefit if the family of the organiser was granted subsistence benefit at least once during the month of application for funeral benefit or during the twelve months prior to application.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) Funeral benefit shall not be paid:
 1) if a person is declared dead;
 2) if funeral expenses are compensated for on the basis of another Act.

 (3) [Repealed - RT I 2009, 35, 232 - entry into force 01.07.2009]

§ 3.  Funeral expenses

  Funeral expenses are expenses incurred for the transport, cremation or burial of the deceased and a funeral service.

§ 4.  Organiser of funeral

 (1) For the purposes of this Act, the organiser of a funeral is a person who bears the expenses of the funeral of the deceased. The organiser of a funeral may be:
 1) a permanent resident of Estonia;
 2) a person residing in Estonia on the basis of a temporary residence permit or temporary right of residence;
 3) a person specified in § 130 of the Aliens Act;
 4) a person specified in subsection 30 (3) of the Citizen of European Union Act;
 5) a rural municipality or city government.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) [Repealed - RT I 2009, 35, 232 - entry into force 01.07.2009]

 (3) A rural municipality or city government shall organise the funeral if the deceased was unidentified or had no kin.

§ 5.  Source of financing of funeral benefit

  The state funeral benefit is financed from the state budget through the budget of the Ministry of Social Affairs.

§ 6.  Amount of funeral benefit

 (1) The amount of funeral benefit shall be established by the Riigikogu in the state budget for each budgetary year.

 (2) The amount of funeral benefit to be established for the following budgetary year shall not be less than the amount of funeral benefit established for the current budgetary year.

 (3) The funeral benefit shall be paid to the rural municipality or city government in the amount of actual funeral expenses but not more than in the amount established on the basis of subsection (1) of this section.
[RT I 2009, 35, 232 - entry into force 01.07.2009]

§ 7.  Application for funeral benefit

 (1) In order to apply for the funeral benefit, the organiser of a funeral shall submit an application to the Social Insurance Board to which the following shall be appended:
 1) an identity document;
 2) a certificate of death registered in an Estonian vital statistics institution or a document certifying the death of the person issued by a relevant authority of a foreign state if the death is registered outside Estonia;
 3) a document from the police authority or another competent agency certifying the time of becoming aware of the death of the person if the organiser of a funeral becomes aware, more than fifteen days after the date of death, of the death of a person who is not buried or cremated.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (1¹) If a rural municipality or city government is the organiser of a funeral, the rural municipality or city government shall submit the following to the Social Insurance Board in addition to the documents specified in subsection (1) of this section:
 1) an authorisation document of the representative of the rural municipality or city government;
 2) documents certifying funeral expenses.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) An application for funeral benefit shall set out the given names and surname and personal identification code of the organiser of the funeral or the name and registry code of the rural municipality or city government, bank account number, contact details and a confirmation that the person or rural municipality or city government is the organiser of the funeral and that the organiser has not been compensated for the funeral expenses on the basis of other Acts.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (3) [Repealed - RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (4) [Repealed - RT I 2002, 61, 375 - entry into force 01.08.2002]

§ 8.  Grant of funeral benefit

 (1) The Social Insurance Board shall decide the grant of funeral benefit.
[RT I, 06.12.2012, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2013]

 (1¹) Funeral benefit shall be granted in the amount in force on the date of death of the person.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (1²) Data concerning the bases for grant and the payment of funeral benefit shall be entered in the state pension insurance register.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (1³) Data in the Social Services and Benefits Registry concerning the receipt of subsistence benefit by the family of the organiser of a funeral shall be entered in the state pension insurance register.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (1⁴) If a rural municipality or city government is the organiser of a funeral, the Social Insurance Board shall check from the Population Register whether the deceased has any kin. For the purposes of this Act, kin shall mean the spouse, parents, adult child, sister or brother of the deceased or another person close to the deceased concluded from his or her way of life.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) Funeral benefit shall be granted if an application for the funeral benefit is submitted within six months as of the date of death except in the case specified in subsection (3) of this section.

 (3) If the organiser of a funeral becomes aware of the death of a person more than fifteen days after the date of death, the organiser of the funeral shall be granted funeral benefit if the organiser submits the relevant application within six months as of the date of becoming aware of the death of the person.

§ 9.  Decision to grant funeral benefit

 (1) The Social Insurance Board shall make a decision concerning the grant of or refusal to grant funeral benefit not later than on the working day following the date of receipt of the data necessary for application for funeral benefit.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) The applicant for funeral benefit shall be immediately notified of a refusal to grant funeral benefit. The decision concerning refusal to grant funeral benefit and the grounds for the refusal together with a reference to the corresponding provision of law shall be sent to the applicant for the benefit within five working days. Original documents shall be returned to the applicant for the benefit and the procedure for appeal shall be explained to the applicant.

§ 10.  Grounds for refusal to grant funeral benefit

  Funeral benefit shall not be granted if:
 1) the requirements of entitlement to funeral benefit established by this Act are not met;
 2) the applicant for the benefit submits false information;
 3) funeral benefit has already been granted for the death concerned;
 4) the applicant for the benefit fails to eliminate the deficiencies and submit the additional documents within the prescribed term.
[RT I 2002, 61, 375 - entry into force 01.08.2002]

§ 11.  Payment of funeral benefit

 (1) Funeral benefit is paid as a single payment according to the request of the organiser of the funeral:
 1) to the bank account of the organiser in Estonia at the expense of the payer;
 2) on the basis of a written application of the organiser of the funeral specified in clauses 4 (1) 1)–4) of this Act prepared at the Social Insurance Board or a notarially authenticated application, to the bank account of another person, including a rural municipality or city government, in Estonia at the expense of the payer;
 3) to the bank account of the organiser of the funeral specified in clauses 4 (1) 1)–4) of this Act in a foreign state at the expense of the recipient, unless otherwise provided by an international agreement.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (2) Funeral benefit shall be paid to the bank account of the organiser of the funeral within three working days as of the date of making the decision to grant funeral benefit.
[RT I 2008, 48, 264 - entry into force 01.02.2009]

§ 12.  Resolution of disputes

 (1) If an applicant for funeral benefit does not agree with a decision of the Social Insurance Board, he or she has the right to file a challenge with the Social Insurance Board pursuant to the procedure provided for in the Administrative Procedure Act.

 (2) A challenge shall be resolved within 30 days after registration of the challenge by the Social Insurance Board.

 (3) If an applicant for the benefit disagrees with a decision on the challenge, he or she has the right of recourse to an administrative court within 30 days as of the date on which the person is notified of the decision on the challenge.
[RT I, 06.12.2012, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2013]

§ 13.  Reclamation of funeral benefit

 (1) Funeral benefit which was paid without basis due to the person who received the funeral benefit having knowingly submitted false information shall be reclaimed on the basis of a reasoned decision of the Social Insurance Board. The decision shall be sent within five working days to the person who received the funeral benefit together with a proposal to find an agreement concerning the repayment of the amount of the benefit paid without basis. If an agreement is not reached, the Social Insurance Board has the right to issue a precept to the person who knowingly submitted false information, requiring repayment of the amount of the funeral benefit which was paid without basis.
[RT I, 06.12.2012, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2013]

 (2) If funeral expenses are compensated for to the organiser of a funeral on the basis of another Act, the organiser of the funeral is required to repay the received amount of state funeral benefit to the bank account of the Social Insurance Board within five working days as of the date of receipt of compensation for funeral expenses.
[RT I, 06.12.2012, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2013]

 (3) Upon failure to perform the obligation specified in subsection (1) of this section, the Social Insurance Board may impose penalty payment pursuant to the procedure provided for in the Substitutive Enforcement and Penalty Payment Act.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

 (4) The upper limit of penalty payment specified in subsection (3) of this section is 130 euros.
[RT I 2010, 22, 108 - entry into force 01.01.2011]

§ 13¹.  Payment of earlier granted funeral benefits

  Funeral benefits granted before 1 February 2009 shall be paid pursuant to the procedure provided for in § 11 of this Act as of 1 February 2009.
[RT I 2008, 48, 264 - entry into force 01.02.2009]

§ 13².  Implementing provisions

 (1) If a person dies before 1 July 2009 and an application for the funeral benefit is submitted within six months as of the date of death, the funeral benefit is granted and paid according to the State Funeral Benefits Act in force until 1 July 2009. If the organiser of a funeral becomes aware of the death of a person more than fifteen days after the date of death, the funeral benefit shall be granted and paid if the organiser submits the application within six months as of the date of becoming aware of the death of the person, but not later than on 31 December 2009.

 (2) Subsection (1) of this section does not apply to rural municipality and city governments.
[RT I 2009, 35, 232 - entry into force 01.07.2009]

 (3) The organiser of a funeral who complies with the conditions specified in clauses 4 (1) 1)–4) of this Act is not entitled to apply for funeral benefit upon the death of a person who deceased before 1 January 2015.
[RT I, 04.12.2014, 1 - entry into force 01.01.2015]

§ 14.  Entry into force of Act

  This Act enters into force on 1 March 2001.