How to Have a Home Funeral During the Pandemic

(Adapted from Home Funerals Guides and Pandemic Care)
Safe and Appropriate Home Body Care for the Deceased
  • Limit the number of people involved in all facets of care
  • Use the same universal precautions that were used during home care, including masks, gloves, gowns, etc.
  • Put a mask on the deceased to avoid respiration of droplets
  • Place ice higher on the back of the neck
  • Avoid chest compression or unnecessary moving
  • Insist on social distancing in all phases

On This Page

  • Practical information for conducting a safe and meaningful home funeral
  • Resources and organizations with supporting practical guidance
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Filing Paperwork Without a Funeral Director
  • Filing electronically via a local funeral director may be the only expeditious way to obtain a death certificate (See How to Complete Paperwork)
  • Be prepared that Medical Examiner’s offices may insert themselves into routine non-COVID-19 deaths as a public health precaution
  • If a funeral director is needed (See How to Work with Professionals)
  • Make calls until you find a funeral director supportive of family involvement who is willing to help with filing and body transport while honoring the home funeral elements that are still possible and important to you
  • For general context on home funerals in ordinary circumstances, visit our How to Have a Home Funeral page

Organizations with Supplementary Resources


Much of the information on our other pages can provide useful background for family-directed care for the dead and hiring funeral service professionals, including our Glossary, How to Arrange Disposition, How to Work with Professionals, How to Create Ceremony, How to Go Out Greener, and our imagination-expanding Stories. Just keep in mind these pages reflect normal circumstances; you will have to factor in the limitations and stressors on all helping systems referenced here.​
Washington Funeral Resources and Education is a non-commercial public interest site dedicated to helping Washington consumers care for their own dead with or without the assistance of a funeral director. See FuneralPartnership.org for more state funeral information. This site is maintained as a project of White Eagle Memorial Preserve and Sacred Earth Foundation, which coordinates responses to inquiries with other Washington-based organizations and practitioners that support the mission of the Funeral Partnership.
Disclaimer: 
This website has been created by volunteers making reasonable efforts to provide resources and materials for informational purposes only. Any information you obtain from this website is not legal advice and should not be relied upon without confirmation of current law. No warranties, expressed or implied, are made with respect to the information herein. There is no guarantee that the information contained here is complete or up-to-date as of the date that you view this site. ​The agencies linked via hyperlinks are responsible for the content of those sites. Their information is subject to change and should be consulted directly to ensure accurate and up-to-date information. Please report any inaccuracies to us in the form on the CONTACT page. Thank you!