Funeral Assistance FAQ

While a funeral home employee may help an individual gather required documentation, they cannot speak on behalf of the applicant unless the applicant designates them to act on their behalf through a power of attorney.

Financial assistance for pre-disaster renters may cover reimbursement for short-term lodging expenses, funds to rent temporary housing, funds to replace or repair necessary personal property, a vehicle; uninsured funeral, medical, dental, childcare, moving and storage expenses. Uninsured medical and dental expenses may include lost or damaged medical equipment or disaster-caused injuries.

If Direct Housing Assistance is authorized for the disaster, you may be eligible for Direct Temporary Housing Assistance if you are unable to use financial assistance to secure temporary housing and you have no other housing options available to you.

The death certificate amendment process starts by contacting the individual who certified the death. This may be a physician, local coroner, or local medical examiner. You may provide them with evidence supporting your claim the death was attributable to COVID-19.

FEMA expanded its COVID-19 Funeral Assistance documentation requirements to allow applicants to submit a signed statement from the certifying official listed on the death certificate, or the local medical examiner or local coroner, attributing the death to COVID-19 for deaths that occurred between Jan. 20 and May 16, 2020.

The signed statement must accompany the death certificate and include a causal pathway, or explanation, linking the cause of death on the death certificate to COVID-‍19.

No. For deaths occurring after May 16, 2020, COVID-19 Funeral Assistance documentation must include a death certificate that attributes the death to COVID-19 and shows the death occurred in the United States, including the U.S. territories or the District of Columbia.

Following consultation with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), FEMA believes the largest number of undiagnosed COVID-19 cases most likely occurred early in the pandemic and prior to the CDC’s guidance on death certification.

No. The statement must be signed by the certifying official listed on the death certificate, or the local medical examiner or local coroner in the jurisdiction where the individual died.

You will not be asked to provide proof of life insurance. Life insurance proceeds are not considered a duplication of COVID-19 Funeral Assistance.

FEMA will not approve financial assistance for third-party fees charged to assist individuals with the COVID-19 Funeral Assistance application process.