Cemetery and burial fees; payment

The municipalities charge fees for the use of their burial facilities on the basis of cemetery fee statutes.

The fees for the use of the municipal burial facilities can generally be divided into grave usage fees and burial fees.

The amount of the grave usage fees is essentially based on the cost of providing and maintaining the cemetery. It is usually charged once in advance for the entire period of use. The burial fees cover the usual services for a burial, such as opening and closing the grave, laying out in the mortuary, etc., taking into account the regular expenses.

A distinction must be made between the user fees and the administrative fee that the municipality can charge for official acts with which it enforces the burial regulations.

The user fees are set out in a statute on the basis of the Local Rates Act. The fee revenue should cover the costs that can be calculated according to economic principles. The fees are also to be calculated according to the extent to which the public facility is used. The prerequisite for charging administrative fees is a municipal cost statute, the legal basis of which is the Cost Act. The administrative costs and the importance of the matter must be taken into account.

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