Nobody looks this up in advance, which is why the first day after a death goes wrong for so many families. There is one form that lets you bury or cremate, and a separate certificate that lets you close accounts, claim insurance and settle the estate. Get the first one before the funeral and the second one within days.
This guide is built on the National Registration Department's (JPN) own service pages for death registration in the Peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak, its pages on deaths abroad and on certificate extracts (read 7 October 2026, site updated 6 October), the MyGOV portal's first-steps page (updated 15 September 2026), and PERKESO's Invalidity Scheme page.
*Cover image: P. Ramlee's 1973 death certificate (Borang N, Perakuan Kematian, under the Births and Deaths Registration Ordinance 1957), as displayed in a memorial exhibit. Malaysian government document, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.*
Step 1: confirm the death
In a hospital or clinic, the medical officer confirms the death and issues the paperwork for both the funeral and JPN.
At home or anywhere outside a hospital, MyGOV's guidance is to call 999 if the death needs confirming and to report it to the police, who issue the burial permit. If anything about the death looks unusual, the police investigate and there may be a post-mortem.
Step 2: the burial permit
In the Peninsula, JPN names three death-confirming agencies: hospitals, the police (PDRM) and DBKL in Kuala Lumpur. The agency fills in form JPN.LM02 (Pin.1/11), which is both the death register entry and the burial permit (permit mengubur).
- The blue copy goes to the informant, normally a family member.
- One copy goes to the cemetery keeper before burial.
- The grey copy is sent by the agency to the nearest JPN office within 7 working days, where the death is recorded.
For Muslim deaths, MyGOV says to contact the mosque's funeral management. For other faiths, the funeral follows your own religious rites, but the permit is the same.
Step 3: the death certificate from JPN
Go to any JPN office in the Peninsula with:
- the blue JPN.LM02 copy;
- the deceased's original MyKad or other identity document;
- your own MyKad, original and a copy;
- the doctor's cause-of-death form, JPN.LM09, or JPN.LM10 after a post-mortem, if the death was in hospital.
There is no fee. The certificate can be collected by the deceased's parents, spouse, children or full siblings, or by the informant named on the form.
The Peninsula's late-registration route, with a RM50 fee and two sponsors, now applies only to deaths that happened before 1 December 2011.
Sabah and Sarawak count the hours
East Malaysia runs its own registration law, and it is stricter about time.
- Sabah: register within 24 hours, free, using Borang B and Borang N2. Day 2 to day 10 costs RM5, after day 10 RM10. A death at home needs a police report.
- Sarawak: register within 24 hours, free, using Borang III and Borang XI. Day 2 to day 7 costs RM5, after day 7 RM10. You also need the Ketua Masyarakat or Ketua Kaum's confirmation and the medical certificate of cause of death (Borang VIII, or Borang IX after a post-mortem).
If the deceased's MyKad is missing, both states ask for a police report about it.
If the death happened abroad
Report it at any JPN office. It is free. Bring form JPN.LK01, the deceased's original MyKad, your MyKad and a copy, plus the foreign death certificate, the hospital's confirmation and a confirmation letter from the Malaysian embassy there. JPN updates its records and issues a letter confirming the death. A spouse, parent, child or sibling aged 18 or over can file.
Extra copies later
Banks, insurers and land offices often keep the copy you give them. A fresh extract costs RM10 for the search and RM5 for the extract on form JPN.LM13 (Sabah deaths use Borang N2, Sarawak deaths Borang XI). Parents, spouse, children, siblings, grandparents, grandchildren and legal guardians can apply in person; lawyers can apply for clients.
Money: PERKESO and the EPF
If the deceased was an employee covered by PERKESO, the Funeral Management Benefit (Faedah Pengurusan Mayat) pays up to RM3,000 for a death from any cause, in force since 1 June 2024. It pays the actual cost or RM3,000, whichever is lower, against receipts, to the eligible heir or whoever paid for the funeral. Keep every receipt.
Dependants may also qualify for a monthly Survivors' Pension (Pencen Penakat) if the worker died before 60 after meeting the contribution test, usually 24 monthly contributions in the last 40 months. It is 50% to 65% of the average assumed monthly wage, with a minimum of RM550 a month. Notify PERKESO of the death through its benefits portal or any PERKESO office.
EPF savings go to the nominee directly if the member made a nomination. Without one, heirs claim through the estate, which is slower. Our guide to dying without a will covers how that works.
*Sources: JPN service pages for regular, late and overseas death registration (Peninsula, Sabah, Sarawak) and for death register searches and extracts, read 7 October 2026; MyGOV, Langkah awal apabila berlaku kematian (updated 15 September 2026); PERKESO, Skim Keilatan (LINDUNG PEKERJA) benefits page.*
