Repatriation of Remains from Jeddah 0552803439 | Office for Returning a Deceased Person Home by Air

Home Safe arranges the repatriation of a deceased person’s remains from Jeddah to their home country by air: we coordinate the documents with the family, the sponsor and the embassy, book the nearest flight, and take the remains to the airport and hand them to the airline. The procedures take 3 to 7 working days for a natural death. To reach us: 0552803439.

محاور هذا الدليل28إظهارإخفاء

1. What do you do first when a relative dies in Jeddah?
2. Documents required to repatriate remains from Saudi Arabia
3. Steps for repatriating remains from Jeddah
4. The parties we coordinate with
5. How long do repatriation procedures take?
6. Who bears the cost of repatriation?
7. What sets the cost of transporting remains by air?
8. Transporting remains by air: Saudia and other airlines
9. Transport from the hospital to Jeddah airport
10. Burial in the Kingdom instead of repatriation
11. Repatriation from Makkah, Madinah, Taif and other cities
12. Receipt in the destination country
13. The countries we repatriate to
14. What delays repatriation
15. Why Home Safe?
16. Related pages
17. Tags
18. Frequently asked questions about repatriating remains from Jeddah
19. How long do repatriation procedures from Jeddah take?
20. Which documents are needed to repatriate remains from Saudi Arabia?
21. Who bears the cost of repatriation?
22. How much does it cost to transport remains by air?
23. Do you transport remains on Saudia?
24. Can a relative accompany the remains?
25. Can the deceased be buried in Saudi Arabia?
26. Do you serve Makkah, Madinah and Taif?
27. What if the death was caused by an accident?
28. Who receives the remains in the destination country?

We know that whoever reads this page is going through a hard time. We have kept it short and clear: what is needed, in what order, and who does what.

What do you do first when a relative dies in Jeddah?

1. Notification of death: if the death was in a hospital, it issues the notification. If it was elsewhere, the Red Crescent and the police are informed.
2. Informing the sponsor or employer: they have a part in the documents, and bear the costs if the deceased worked for them.
3. Informing the embassy or consulate of the deceased’s country: it issues the no-objection letter and cancels the passport.
4. Gathering the deceased’s papers: the passport and residence permit, and the next of kin’s identity document.
5. Calling us: we tell you exactly what your case needs, and in what order.

Documents required to repatriate remains from Saudi Arabia

Document	Issued by
Notification of death and medical report	The hospital
Death certificate	Civil Affairs
The deceased’s passport and residence permit	Held by the family or the sponsor
No-objection letter for transfer of the remains	The embassy or consulate of the deceased’s country
Consent of the next of kin, or their authorisation	The family, certified
Letter from the sponsor or employer	The sponsor
Certificate of preparation and of freedom from contagious disease	The competent health authority
Permit to transfer the remains out of the Kingdom	The competent government authority
Police and forensic report	In accidents and unnatural deaths only

Steps for repatriating remains from Jeddah

1. Obtaining the notification of death from the hospital, then the death certificate from Civil Affairs.
2. The embassy letter: no objection to transfer of the remains, and cancellation of the deceased’s passport.
3. Preparation of the remains at the approved health facility, and issue of the preparation certificate.
4. The transfer permit out of the Kingdom from the competent authority.
5. Booking the nearest flight reaching the deceased’s country, and confirming it with the airline.
6. Transport to the airport in a dedicated vehicle, and handover at the cargo building.
7. Informing the family of the flight number, the arrival time and the receipt documents.

The parties we coordinate with

• The hospital: the notification of death, the medical report and keeping the remains.
• Civil Affairs: the death certificate.
• The embassy or consulate: the no-objection letter and cancelling the passport.
• The sponsor or employer: their letter, and bearing the costs where they are obliged to.
• The health authority: preparation and its certificate.
• The airline: the booking and the acceptance conditions.

Some of these steps can be completed only by a family member or the sponsor in person. We tell you which, plainly, and take on what we can be authorised to do.

How long do repatriation procedures take?

Case	Usual time	What lengthens it
Natural death in a hospital	3 – 7 working days	A late letter from the embassy or the sponsor
Death outside a hospital	5 – 10 working days	The security authorities’ report
Accident or unnatural death	Two weeks or more	Completion of the investigation and forensic examination

Public holidays and the weekend close government offices and embassies, and so add to the time. We book the flight after the permit is issued, not before.

Who bears the cost of repatriation?

• A worker with an employer: the Saudi Labour Law obliges the employer to bear the cost of preparing the worker’s remains and transporting them home, unless social insurance covers it.
• The insured: some health and life insurance policies cover repatriation of remains. Check the deceased’s policy.
• Visitors, Umrah performers and pilgrims: visit or Umrah insurance covers it in some cases. Otherwise it falls to the family.
• The family: where there is no obliged sponsor and no insurance.
• The embassy: some countries help their nationals in hardship, and some do not.

What sets the cost of transporting remains by air?

• The destination country: the distance and the number of direct flights to it.
• The airline: each carrier has its own tariff for human remains.
• Preparation and the coffin: as the airline and the destination country require.
• Government fees and attestations.
• Inland transport: from the city of death to the airport.

We give no figure here because the cost changes from one case to another. Call 0552803439 and we will tell you the full, itemised cost before any step, with no obligation.

Transporting remains by air: Saudia and other airlines

Airlines, including Saudia, carry human remains as special cargo in the aircraft hold, by advance booking through the cargo agent. We choose the carrier that reaches the deceased’s country on the nearest flight with the fewest stops.

• The coffin: hermetically sealed as air transport rules require, inside an outer case.
• The documents: copies travel with the shipment, and the originals are handed to the consignee or the escort.
• A direct flight: we prefer it wherever one exists. A stop lengthens the time and adds handling.
• The escort: a seat is booked on the same flight if the family wishes.

Transport from the hospital to Jeddah airport

The remains are taken in a dedicated vehicle equipped for the purpose from the hospital mortuary to the cargo building at King Abdulaziz Airport, at the time the airline sets before departure. Our staff member stays with them until handover and receipt of the air waybill.

Burial in the Kingdom instead of repatriation

Repatriation is not the only choice. Many Muslim families choose to bury their relative in the Kingdom, particularly in Makkah or Madinah. That needs the family’s certified consent and a letter from the embassy stating no objection to burial. It is quicker and costs less. We explain both choices to you, and the decision is the family’s.

Repatriation from Makkah, Madinah, Taif and other cities

The procedures are completed in the city of death: its hospital and its Civil Affairs office. The remains are then taken to the nearest international airport. Makkah and Taif are served from Jeddah airport, and Madinah from its own airport or from Jeddah, depending on flights. From other cities we coordinate case by case.

Receipt in the destination country

• Before departure: we send the family the flight number, the arrival time and the air waybill number.
• The consignee: a relative or someone they authorise, with their identity document and copies of the documents.
• Place of receipt: the airport cargo building, not the passenger terminal.
• After arrival: we follow up until the family confirms receipt.

The countries we repatriate to

We repatriate to every country reached by flights from the Kingdom’s airports: Egypt, Sudan, Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and Yemen; India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, the Philippines, Indonesia and Nepal; Ethiopia, Kenya and Nigeria; and Turkey and the countries of Europe. Each country has its consulate’s requirements, which we go through on the first call.

What delays repatriation

• Informing the embassy late: its letter is the first thing asked for, so start with it.
• A name that differs between the passport and the residence permit: corrected before any procedure.
• An absent or unwilling sponsor: there is a legal route through the competent authorities and the embassy.
• Booking before the permits are complete: the booking and its fees are lost.
• Outstanding financial claims on the deceased: reviewed with the sponsor and the embassy.

Why Home Safe?

To reach us: 0552803439, by call or WhatsApp, from 7 am to 11 pm.

Related pages

• Air freight
• Required documents
• Contact us

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Frequently asked questions about repatriating remains from Jeddah

How long do repatriation procedures from Jeddah take?

3 to 7 working days for a natural death once the documents are complete. They take longer in accidents and deaths that need a report from the security authorities.

Which documents are needed to repatriate remains from Saudi Arabia?

The death certificate, the deceased’s passport and residence permit, a no-objection letter from the embassy, the preparation certificate, the transfer permit, and a report from the security authorities in accidents.

Who bears the cost of repatriation?

The Saudi Labour Law obliges the employer to bear the cost of preparing a worker’s remains and transporting them home. For anyone else, the family or insurance bears it.

How much does it cost to transport remains by air?

It varies with the destination country, the airline and the preparation. Call 0552803439 and we will tell you the full cost before any step.

Do you transport remains on Saudia?

We book with the carrier that reaches the deceased’s country on the nearest flight, including Saudia when it serves the destination.

Can a relative accompany the remains?

Yes. A seat is booked for the escort on the same flight, and it is not a condition for completing the repatriation.

Can the deceased be buried in Saudi Arabia?

Yes, with the family’s consent and a letter from the embassy. Many Muslim families choose burial in Makkah or Madinah.

Do you serve Makkah, Madinah and Taif?

Yes. The procedures are completed in the city of death, then the remains are taken to Jeddah airport or the nearest international airport.

What if the death was caused by an accident?

Police and forensic reports are added to the documents, and transfer is not permitted before the legal procedures are finished.

Who receives the remains in the destination country?

A relative of the deceased or someone they authorise, from the airport cargo building, with the receipt documents we send in advance.