Belfast cemeteries are to observe “Daniel’s Law” and reduce excessive burial fees for expats who have decided to come back to the city to reside but tragically pass away before returning home.
Elected members of Belfast City Council agreed across cross party lines to waive big non-residential burial fees in exceptional circumstances, if it can be shown the family member had decided to return back to Belfast to live from abroad. At present non-residential burial fees in Belfast are over £1,000, three times that of burial fees for Belfast residents.
The decision comes after the council received a letter from the neighbouring Ards and North Down Borough Council stating that it had amended its burial Charging policy as a result of a review following the case of 33 year old Daniel Ferguson. In December 2021 he passed away suddenly while living in Australia, a few days before he was due to return to live again in his home town of Donaghadee.
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Ards and North Down council was contacted by the undertaker on behalf of the family to make arrangements for Daniel to be buried at the local Cemetery in Donaghadee. They explained that he had passed away in Australia so a non resident charging rate was applied and the interment took place.
The letter states: “Daniel’s mother subsequently contacted the council asking if it would consider changing the related pricing policy in order to accommodate the circumstances experienced by her family. She explained that her son was packed and ready to return home when he died suddenly and he had already established evidence of residency in Northern Ireland by transferring his address on his official documents.
“His mother also made it clear that she was not seeking redress on her particular case, but a change that would allow similar cases to be avoided in the future. If such a change was possible, she asked if such changes might be encouraged across the other ten councils in Northern Ireland.
"The council considered this request at its meeting in June 2022, and agreed to amend its pricing policy to include the application of a resident’s burial discount if there was evidence of “imminent residency.””
Ards and North Down introduced three criteria for the non-residential fee waiver. The first is proof that other statutory authorities have provided a new form of identification such as a driving licence to the deceased within three months prior to the date of death that included an address within the Borough. The second is proof of an imminent return to the borough, such as flight tickets or other evidence of travel arrangements, and the third is proof that this return was intended to be permanent at the time, with evidence such as a tenancy or mortgage agreement.
At the recent meeting of Belfast City Council’s People and Communities Committee, a council officer recommended a similar change in Belfast’s cemetery policy, to which elected members unanimously agreed.
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