Planning your own funeral and wishes in Spain before you need to

Terms used

• Seguro de decesos — The seguro de decesos is a funeral insurance policy that pays for your funeral when you die.
• Albacea — The albacea is the executor, the person named to carry out your wishes after death.
• Registro de Últimas Voluntades — The Registro de Últimas Voluntades is the register showing whether a person left a will and which notary holds it.
• Instrucciones previas — The instrucciones previas are written advance directives, kept with the regional health service, about your care and wishes.
• Tarjeta de donante — The tarjeta de donante is a donor card showing you want to donate organs. It is symbolic, not legally binding.

Key rules

• Funeral wishes: Your funeral wishes only count if your family knows them, so put them in a signed letter and hand it over.
• Cremation: Cremation needs your known wish or your heirs' consent.
• Organ donor card: The donor card is not legally binding, and your family is always consulted.
• Body donation: A university can refuse your body, so keep a funeral plan as a backup.

Start with a signed letter of wishes

Write down what you want and give a signed copy to your family or the person who will carry out your wishes. Say whether you want burial or cremation, what kind of ceremony, and what happens to your ashes.

A letter works better than a will for this. A will can include funeral wishes, but it is often read too late. Cremation needs your wish to be known, or the heirs' consent, so put it in writing.

Relatives or your executor (albacea) normally carry out your wishes. Name that person in your letter.

What the Registro de Últimas Voluntades does and does not do

The Registro de Últimas Voluntades only shows that a will exists and which notary holds it. It does not record funeral wishes. Your family can consult it only after your death, with a death certificate, and normally after 15 working days.

Some regions also keep a register of advance directives (instrucciones previas, also called voluntades anticipadas). Funeral or organ wishes can sometimes be added there. Ask your regional health service what it accepts, as this differs by region.

Pay in advance: seguro de decesos or prepaid plan

Both reduce the burden on your family. They work differently.

Seguro de decesos. This is a regulated funeral insurance policy.

• It typically covers funeral home services, coffin or urn, hearse, paperwork, and burial or cremation. Many policies also cover transfer of the body within Spain or abroad, and some cover repatriation.
• You pay monthly or yearly, often for life. Premiums usually rise with age or inflation.
• Refunds are rare if you cancel, and you are usually tied to the insurer's funeral providers.
• When you die, your family calls the insurer's 24-hour number with the policy number, your ID and the medical certificate. The insurer sends its funeral home. Your family usually signs off on the service and pays only extras.

Prepaid funeral plan. This is a contract with a funeral home.

• You pay for a set service in one sum or in instalments, and the price is locked in.
• It can be tied to one provider or region, so it is less portable.
• Refund terms depend on the contract. Risks include the provider going bankrupt and extras not being covered.

Before you sign either one, ask about exclusions, waiting periods (often a few months for illness), the capital limit, refunds and whether you can transfer it. Costs above the capital limit fall to your family. Keep the policy number and the 24-hour number where your family can find them.

Organ donation

Spanish law presumes you consent to donation after death unless you objected while alive. In practice, hospital coordinators always ask your family. Donation generally does not go ahead if the family objects or your wishes are unknown.

So tell your family clearly. You can also record your wishes in an advance directive with your regional health service. The national donor card (tarjeta de donante) is symbolic and not legally binding, but it is a useful way to show your intention. Foreign residents with a Spanish health card can use the same routes.

Donating your body to science

Body donation is arranged directly with a university medical faculty's anatomy department. Complutense of Madrid, Barcelona and Valencia are examples.

• You complete the university's donation form while alive, often signed before witnesses or with a copy of your ID. You usually must be an adult, of sound mind and willing.
• Requirements and costs differ by university, so confirm with the one you choose.
• Your family must tell the university promptly at death. The university usually collects the body and pays transport within its area.
• Universities generally refuse bodies after an autopsy, with some infectious diseases, after severe trauma, or if organs were donated. Acceptance also depends on need, so have a backup plan for a funeral.
• After study, which can take one to two years or more, the remains are cremated. Depending on the university, the ashes are scattered, placed in a common grave or returned to the family.

The checklist, documents list and timeline below set out the steps in order.

Timeline and deadlines

• Write down your funeral wishes and give a signed copy to your family: while you are alive, as soon as you decide

• Sign a will before a notary if you want your wishes in it: while you are alive, in addition to the letter

Documents you need

• Your seguro de decesos policy, with the policy number and the insurer's 24-hour number, kept where your family can find them.

• A signed letter of funeral wishes (burial or cremation, ceremony, ashes) given to your family.

• A will (testamento) signed before a notary, if you also want your wishes included in it.

• A prepaid funeral plan contract with a funeral home, if you choose this instead of insurance.

Checklist

• Give a signed copy of your wishes to your family or your executor (albacea).

• Compare a seguro de decesos with a prepaid funeral plan, including price, refunds and portability.

• Ask the insurer or funeral home about exclusions, waiting periods and the capital limit before you sign.

• Contact a university anatomy department for its donation form if you want to donate your body.

• Tell your family about any body donation, so they notify the university promptly at death.

What to watch out for

• Policy limits and waiting periods: A seguro de decesos may not pay costs above its capital limit, or deaths in the waiting period, often a few months for illness. Read the limits and waiting periods before you sign, and ask what extras your family would pay.

• Premiums rise and rarely refund: Decesos premiums are often paid for life, usually rise with age or inflation, and rarely give refunds if you cancel. Check how the premium changes over time before committing.

• Prepaid plan provider risk: A prepaid funeral plan can be tied to one provider or region, and the provider could become insolvent. Extras may not be covered. Check refund terms, transferability and what is excluded in the contract.

• A university may refuse your body: Universities generally refuse bodies after an autopsy, with some infectious diseases, severe trauma, or if organs were donated. Confirm requirements and costs with the faculty and keep a backup funeral plan.

Frequently asked questions

Does the Registro de Últimas Voluntades record my funeral wishes?

No, the Registro de Últimas Voluntades does not record funeral wishes, only that a will exists and which notary holds it. It can be consulted only after death with a death certificate, normally after 15 working days. Give your family a signed letter instead.

Can my family cremate me if I have not said so?

Yes, but only if the heirs consent when your wish is not known.

Is the organ donor card legally binding in Spain?

No, the donor card from the national transplant organisation is symbolic and not legally binding. Spain presumes consent unless you objected while alive, but hospital coordinators always consult your family.

Will a university always accept my body for science?

No, a university does not always accept a body, because acceptance depends on need. Universities generally refuse bodies after an autopsy, with some infectious diseases, severe trauma, or if organs were donated. Ask your family to have a second plan for the funeral.

What happens to my body after it is donated to science?

After study, which can take 1 to 2 years or more, the remains are cremated.