Emergency Filing of Death Certificates and Issuance of Disposition Permits

The County recognizes the need for emergency disposition of remains outside of its regular office hours when delay could cause serious distress or hardship. Emergency filing only applies to the following cases:

• Religious necessity
• Natural disasters
• Extraordinary circumstances requiring out-of-state transportation of a body by the deceased person's family.

In consideration of these unique circumstances, the Department of Health Services has arranged with the County Coroner's Office to provide for filing of death certificates and issuance of disposition permits on weekends and holidays. Those needing to file a death certificate and receive a disposition permit may apply as follows:

Monday - Friday
9:30 a.m. - 12:00 noon
1:30 - 4:00 p.m.
Office of Vital Statistics
415 Humboldt Street,  Santa Rosa

Emergency Filing Only:
Weekends and holidays
Contact Sheriff's Dispatch (707) 565-2121
Coroner's FAX (707) 565-5049

This emergency procedure excludes home deaths filed by family members.

When submitting emergency paperwork after hours, funeral homes will fax these forms to the Coroner's Office. Coroner's staff will verify the completion of the forms, issue an authorization number, and call or fax the authorization number to the funeral home.

Funeral Home Application for Death Certificate (PDF: 23 Kb)

Funeral Home Application for Fetal Death Certificate (PDF: 23 Kb)

$12 fee for the disposition permit will be paid to the Office of Vital Statistics by the funderal home within 48 hours of issuance of the permit.

The funeral home will bring or mail to the Office of Vital Statistics the original death certificate for EDRS registration.