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AUSTRIAN PROCEDURAL FORMALITIES IN THE EVENT OF THE DEATH OF AN AMERICAN CITIZEN

GENERAL

The first requirement is the issuance of a coroner's certificate. In Vienna, this document is known as the "Todesbescheinigung" and in the other Austrian provinces the "Totenbeschaubefund". Based on this document and the passport of the deceased, the official Austrian certificate of death is issued by the Registrar's Office (Standesamt) in whose district the death occurred. Only after the official Austrian death certificate is obtained, may arrangements for disposition of the remains be made.

CORONER'S CERTIFICATE (Todesbescheinigung or Totenbeschaubefund)

A. If death occurs in a hospital, the hospital will issue this certificate and forward it to the competent Standesamt within one or two working days, depending on whether the cause of death could readily be established or whether an autopsy was required. (Under Austrian law, an autopsy may be performed without the consent of the next of kin.)

B. If death occurs in a private home or in a hotel, the competent official physician, a local government contract employee (Amtsarzt), must be notified. In Vienna this official physician may be reached only through the District Public Health Office (Bezirksgesundheitsamt) for the district where the death occurred (and then only during working hours).

These offices are located as follows:

1st and 8th districts: Wipplinger Strasse 8, 1010 Vienna, Tel.: 534 36-280

2nd district: Karmelitergasse 9, 1020 Vienna, Tel.: 211 06-280

3rd district: Karl-Borromäus-Platz 3, 1030 Vienna, Tel.: 711 34-280

4th and 5th districts: Favoritenstrasse 18, 1040 Vienna, Tel.: 502 34-280

6th and 7th districts: Amerlingstrasse 11, 1060 Vienna, Tel.: 588 21-280

9th district: Währinger Strasse 39, 1090 Vienna, Tel.: 400 34-280

10th district: Laxenburger Strasse 43-47, 1100 Vienna, Tel.: 605 34-280

11th district: Enkplatz 2, 1110 Vienna, Tel.: 740 34-280

12th district: Hufelandgasse 2, 1120 Vienna, Tel.: 811 34-280

13th and 14th districts: Hietzinger Kai 1-3, 1130 Vienna, Tel.: 8708 34-280

15th district: Gasgasse 8-10, 1150 Vienna, Tel.: 891 34-0

16th district: Richard-Wagner-Platz 19, 1160 Vienna, Tel.: 491 96-280

17th district: Elterleinplatz 14, 1170 Vienna, Tel.: 401 19-280

18th district: Währinger Strasse 124, 1180 Vienna, Tel.: 476 34-280

19th district: Gatterburggasse 14, 1190 Vienna, Tel.: 360 34-280

20th district: Brigittaplatz 10, 1200 Vienna, Tel.: 331 34-292

21st district: Franz-Jonas-Platz 2-3, 1210 Vienna, Tel.: 277 34-299

22nd district: Schrödingerplatz 1, 1220 Vienna, Tel.: 211 23-280

23rd district: Perchtoldsorfer Strasse 2, 1230 Vienna, Tel.: 863 34-280

The official physician is available at the offices listed above only during a normal workday. On Saturdays, Sundays and local holidays, a central coroner's service (Zentrale Totenbeschau) may be reached by telephoning: 797 75-87890. Outside the hours described above, no official physician is available to view the remains and issue the coroner's certificate (Todesbescheinigung) required for the issuance of an official certificate of death.

In the Austrian provinces, a Public Health Office (Gesundheitsamt) attached to the Municipal Offices of major cities must be contacted to send an official physician (Amtsarzt) in the event of the medically unattended death of an American citizen in such city. Hours of these offices in the major provincial cities are similar to those in Vienna outlined above. In other towns, a municipal physician (Gemeindearzt) performs the functions of a coroner and must be contacted for viewing the remains and issuance of a coroner's report (Totenbeschaubefund). Their office hours vary.

The Amtsarzt in Vienna and the other major cities or the Gemeindearzt in other towns will normally issue the coroner's report if the cause of death can readily be established. Otherwise they will order an autopsy. In Vienna and other major cities where there is an Institute of Forensic Medicine, the autopsy will be performed by such institution. In other areas, the autopsy will be performed at the nearest hospital. The institute or hospital where the autopsy was performed will then issue the coroner's report. This may take up to three working days.

C. If death occurs on the road, the police must be called who will arrange for the transport of the remains by ambulance either to an Institute of Forensic Medicine or to the morgue of the nearest hospital. In such cases an autopsy is regularly performed, and a coroner's certificate (Todesbescheinigung or Totenbeschaubefund) is issued by the institute or hospital. This normally takes up to three working days.

D. In the event the coroner (Amtsarzt or Gemeindearzt) suspects that death did not occur from natural causes, he refers the case to the public prosecutor who then orders an autopsy by a forensic medicine expert to determine whether any other person was at fault in the death. It depends on the results of this examination as to whether the remains will be released after the autopsy and a coroner's certificate issued or whether further investigation will be required. The process described in this paragraph may take from one to several weeks.

AUSTRIAN CERTIFICATE OF DEATH

This document is issued by the Registrar's Office (Standesamt) in whose venue the death occurred, upon presentation of the coroner's certificate (Todesbescheinigung), as well as the U.S. passport of the deceased. The Registrar's Offices are located in the Municipal Office of the town concerned. In Vienna there are a number of these offices as follows:

In Vienna there are a number of these offices as follows:

1st, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th districts: Schlesingerplatz 4, 1080 Vienna, Tel.: 401 34-0

2nd and 20th districts: Brigittaplatz 10, A-1200 Vienna, Tel.: 331 34-0

3rd district: Karl-Borromäus-Platz 3, A-1030 Vienna, Tel.: 711 34-0

4th, 5th and 12th districts: Schönbrunner Str. 54, A-1050 Vienna, Tel.: 546 34-0

10th district and 11th district: Keplerplatz 5, A-1100 Vienna, Tel.: 605 34-580

13th, 14th, 15th and 23rd districts: Hietzinger Kai 1-3, A-1130 Vienna, Tel.: 878 34-0

16th and 17th districts: Richard-Wagner-Platz 19, A-1160 Vienna, Tel.: 491 96-580

18th and 19th districts: Martinstrasse 100, A-1180 Vienna, Tel.: 476 34-580

21st district: Am Spitz 1, A-1210 Vienna, Tel.: 277 34-0

22nd district: Siebeckstr. 7, A-1220 Vienna, Tel.: 211 23-580

Registrars' office hours in Vienna are workdays from 8:00 am to 2:00 pm. They are normally the same in the provinces. The issuance of a certificate of death requires approximately one hour. Currently, a fee of 8 Euros is charged for each copy of the certificate.

The certificate of death may be obtained in person or by the undertaking establishment selected by responsible party for preparation for shipment, local burial or cremation of the remains.

DISPOSITION OF REMAINS

A. If local burial or cremation is desired, a nearby mortician should be given pertinent instructions and will assist in obtaining necessary documentation, in locating a satisfactory burial site and will advise as to prices, which must normally be deposited in advance, and of the date available for the funeral ceremony.

B. If shipment of remains is desired, the American Embassy, Consular Section, tel: 313 39-7535, stands ready to assist in every possible way.

An Austrian funeral director/mortician near the location of the remains should be informed as soon as possible so that preparation of the remains may be initiated. The mortician will advise on the deposit required for preparation and shipment. In this case too, the name and address of the funeral home in the United States where the remains are to be shipped must be provided to the Austrian mortician. The preparation of remains must be carried out in an Institute of Forensic Medicine or in a hospital. It must be emphasized that "preparation of remains" in Austria normally means preservation of the remains as required for air transport and does not necessarily mean that the remains will be suitable for viewing as Americans have come to expect. The costs of preservation vary from approximately $3000 to approximately $4000. The total cost for preparation and shipment of remains to the United States is approximately $7500; cremation and shipment of the urn to the United States is approximately $2500 (which varies from province to province).

Under Austrian law, the cremated remains may not be released to a private person (except in the province of Salzburg), including the next of kin, but must either be buried locally or shipped to a cemetery, funeral home or a private person in the United States for disposition in accordance with local U.S. law. As mentioned before, the Embassy, Consular Section, can assist in returning the cremated remains to the U.S.

The preparation of remains in Austria takes from three to five working days. Once the remains are prepared, they are placed in a special casket required for air transport. This must be done by the mortician in the presence of an Austrian customs officer who is available only during limited hours on workdays. The local mortician obtains a so-called "remains passport" (Leichenpass) from the local health office and the embalmer's statement from the doctor who prepared the remains. These documents, together with a copy of the Austrian certificate of death, are then delivered to the Embassy in Vienna. The local mortician together with the American Embassy, Consular Section, also makes arrangements for the shipping of the remains with an airline/forwarding agent.

The Embassy, upon receipt of the documents listed above, which are required for shipment of remains by Austrian and U.S. Customs authorities, and the flight information, prepares a Consular Mortuary Certificate and a Report of Death of an American Citizen. This procedure takes about two hours. All the documents are then returned to the local mortician/forwarding agent for shipment with the remains as required by law. The Austrian mortician/forwarding agent will then deliver the remains to the nearest airport for transport to the United States. The whole procedure, until the remains arrive in the United States, may take from 7 to 10 working days.

D. It must be emphasized that Austrian morticians will not begin the process of preparation and disposition (except for local pauper's burial at Austrian municipal expense), without payment in advance. It is therefore essential that sufficient funds be available in Austria or obtained immediately. If next of kin or friends in Austria do not have funds readily available, one practical means of transferring funds from the United States is through the Department of State in Washington, D.C. In such cases, the remitter in the United States must transfer the funds through Western Union to the Department of State, Overseas Citizens Services (OCS), Washington, D.C. 20520, tel: (202) 647 5225, with instructions to forward the funds in question to the American Embassy in Vienna, Austria, for the desired disposition of the remains of the deceased. The name of the deceased must be clearly indicated when the funds are transferred to the Department of State. Upon receipt of the funds, the Department of State will inform the Embassy in Vienna by telegram of the deposit. The funds will then either be released to the next of kin in Austria or the Embassy will itself proceed with arrangements for the disposition of the remains in accordance with instructions received from the next of kin or representative of the deceased in the United States.

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