Funeral Assistance FAQ

During the first 365 days after you apply for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance, FEMA sends a series of reminders asking you to submit any outstanding required information and documentation. If you do not submit the information and documentation within 365 days, you will be notified your application was placed in a suspended status. When your application is suspended, FEMA will not send additional reminders or continue to follow-up on your application. If you no longer wish to be considered for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance, no further action is needed. If you do want FEMA to finish processing your application, you can submit the required information and documentation, and FEMA will reopen your application for additional processing. You will not need to submit an appeal.

No. Pre-paid funerals and funerals that have been paid by the deceased individual’s estate are not eligible for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance.

FEMA will not contact you unless you have already called FEMA and applied for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance. Do not disclose information such as the name, birth date, or Social Security number of any deceased individual during an unsolicited telephone call or e-mail from anyone.

Phone calls from FEMA may come from an unidentified number. If you doubt a caller is legitimate, hang up and report the call to the COVID-19 Funeral Assistance Helpline at 844-684-6333 or the National Center for Fraud Hotline at 866-720-5721.

• States, tribes, territories, businesses, organizations, and other entities are not eligible for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance.
• A minor child applying on behalf of an adult who is not a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified non-citizen cannot apply for COVID-19 Funeral Assistance.
  • However, a minor child who is a U.S. citizen, non-citizen national, or qualified non-citizen, can apply if they directly incurred funeral expenses for a COVID-19-related death and the documentation supports that assertion.
• There are several categories of non-citizens who are not eligible for FEMA’s Individuals and Households Program, including COVID-19 Funeral Assistance. These individuals include, but are not limited to:
  • Citizens of the Federated States of Micronesia, Palau, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands
  • Temporary tourist visa holders
  • Foreign students
  • Temporary work visa holders

You are encouraged to provide documentation verifying the death was attributed to COVID-19, along with proof of funeral expenses and proof of other funeral assistance received, as soon as possible. Once FEMA receives all your documentation, we will verify and validate it as part of the application review process.

Eligible COVID-19 Funeral Assistance expenses typically include, but are not limited to:

• Funeral services
• Cremation
• Interment
• Transportation for up to two individuals to identify the deceased individual
• Transfer of remains
• Casket or urn
• Burial plot or cremation niche
• Marker or headstone
• Clergy or officiant services
• Arrangement of the funeral ceremony
• Use of funeral home equipment or staff
• Costs associated with producing and certifying multiple death certificates
• Additional expenses mandated by any applicable local or state government laws or ordinances

Funeral homes are not eligible to apply on your behalf or to be a co-applicant on your COVID-19 Funeral Assistance application. The person applying must be an individual, not a business or other entity, who incurred COVID-19-related funeral expenses.

If you incurred COVID-19-related funeral expenses for more than one individual, you may receive at a maximum of $9,000 per deceased individual and a maximum of $35,500 per application, if you incurred funeral expenses for multiple deceased individuals per state, U.S. territory, or the District of Columbia.

All funeral expenses for a deceased individual must be submitted in a single application. You may include one co-applicant on your application. If multiple people contribute toward an individual’s COVID-19-related funeral expenses, one of them should apply for assistance and submit funeral expense documentation from everyone who contributed in that single application.