Funeral Planning

Funeral Planning Malaysia | Making An Informed Decision

Funeral planning are complex as it involves legal issues, funeral wake decisions, notifying family & friends, penning obituaries and more.

About Funeral Planning

Funeral planning can be both stressful and difficult, more so if you have no experience in which most of us are not. Often times, the person in charge of making funeral arrangements are grieving over the loss of a loved one and may not have a clear understanding of the wishes of their deceased loved one. Below is a checklist that may assist in the funeral planning of your loved one.

Legalities of Funeral Planning

Death needs to be registered with the National Registration Department (NRD) through the police or hospital. The next of kin will be provided with the death registration/burial permit which must be submitted to the crematorium or cemetery caretaker for further action.

Informing Family & Friends

Ensure that all family members and friends are notified immediately so that those travelling from abroad can arrange for transportation and accommodation. At the same time, you might also want to advise on the appropriate type of dress code.

Committee of Family Members

Gather the closest family members to discuss the responsibilities of the funeral service, delegation of tasks and expenses involved for the funeral arrangements. If there is any special request done prior to the deceased, it would be best to discuss it at the beginning. Choose a funeral service provider and make an appointment to meet with the funeral director.

Types of Funeral Services

Discuss what religion/faith will the funeral planning and arrangements be based on. If burial is the choice, have the burial plot been purchased? If cremation is the choice, have a final resting arrangement been made (columbarium or cemetery)?

Funeral Arrangements

The funeral arrangements can be overwhelming, thus the funeral director can assist you in planning out the entire process. Usually, areas discussed include the type of casket for burial or cremation, embalming the body (if needed), the deceased clothings, jewelry or items to include in the casket, where the deceased will be laid to rest (purchasing burial plot or columbarium), seating arrangements, catering for funeral and more.

Obituary

Obituary needs to be written and placed in the newspapers. Decide on which days to go for, and get in touch with the newspapers to place the obituary.

Other Details

Once all the above pertinent details on the funeral have been confirmed, sit down and look into the details. You may want to state preferences for condolences wreaths that will come to the funeral parlor. You can also decide if the donations received will be given to a charity of choice (optional).

Administrative Matters

Upon completion of the funeral, family members may want to start looking into all other administrative issues such as notifying banks, tax office, subscriptions, mobile phone, insurance and so on. You may also want to consider closing or adding a final remark on the social media accounts of the deceased. Lastly if the deceased have a will, it is also time to contact the lawyers to begin the process of executing the will.