Farra is a death administration assistant for UK families. Get step-by-step guidance for registering a death, applying for probate, notifying banks, and managing bereavement admin. From essential documents to practical checklists, Farra simplifies estate paperwork and funeral-related tasks so you can focus on what matters.
Relatives coming from abroad for a funeral in the UK travel as visitors. Depending on their nationality, they need a Standard Visitor visa, an electronic travel authorisation (ETA), or neither — GOV.UK's check if you need a UK visa tool answers that in a few questions. A visitor visa decision usually takes about 3 weeks, and paid priority and super priority services can be faster where they are available. Funerals in the UK are often arranged within a week or two, so it helps to start as soon as the date is known.
When someone dies in the UK, family abroad often want to be there for the funeral. Whether they can come at short notice depends mostly on their nationality, and on how quickly they can get the right permission to travel.
This guide is general information. It is not advice about anyone's individual application.
Every visitor to the UK falls into one of three groups, depending on nationality:
GOV.UK's check if you need a UK visa tool gives the answer for a particular passport. An ETA does not guarantee entry to the UK.
Seeing family or friends is one of the things a visitor can do in the UK, and a Standard Visitor can usually stay for up to 6 months. A funeral visit is an ordinary family visit; there is no separate funeral visa.
GOV.UK says you will usually get a decision on a Standard Visitor visa within 3 weeks, counted from when you have applied online, proved your identity and provided your documents. The earliest you can apply is 3 months before you travel.
Where it is offered, you can pay for a faster decision:
These are usual timescales, not guarantees. A decision can take longer if the Home Office needs to check details with other departments or asks for more information, and you usually will not get the fee back if it does. Not every visa application centre offers both services, so check when booking the appointment.
In England and Wales a burial or cremation needs either the registrar's certificate for burial or cremation (the "green form") or, where a coroner is involved, the coroner's permission. If the death has been reported to a coroner, the date may not be known for some time. Our guides to how long coroner cases take and arranging a funeral explain what decides the date.
Where faith practice calls for a quick burial, families sometimes hold the funeral promptly and plan a later memorial or visit to the grave for relatives who could not travel in time.
Rowan's guides cover whether a nationality needs a visa or an ETA and the Standard Visitor route in full, including the documents an application usually needs. Rowan is a guide to UK visas run by the same team as Farra.
Only a person regulated by the Immigration Advice Authority, or a solicitor, can advise on an individual application. GOV.UK has a search for a regulated immigration adviser.
No. Someone coming for a funeral visits as a Standard Visitor, or with an ETA if their nationality allows it. Seeing family or friends is one of the things a visitor can do.
GOV.UK says a Standard Visitor decision usually takes about 3 weeks. Where available, priority usually takes 5 working days and super priority usually comes by the end of the next working day. Neither is guaranteed.
Most will need an electronic travel authorisation (ETA) rather than a visa. GOV.UK's visa check tool confirms what a particular passport needs.