Is urn burial outside the cemetery possible?
Yes. In accordance with the provisions of Section 33(2) of the Municipal Sanitary Services Act, the district administrative authority may, at the request of the relatives, grant an exemption from the ban on burying an urn of ashes outside a cemetery on a private plot of land after the death of the person concerned. For this purpose, certain requirements must be met and an application must be submitted with the necessary documents or information.
What are the requirements for a permit?
- There must be no sanitary concerns and the interment must not violate reverence and dignity or the orderly burial system.
- The appearance of a cemetery must not be created, taking into account the number of interments already approved, proximity to each other, and the surrounding area.
- Burial shall be in an urn that is biodegradable during the minimum resting period of ten years in an earthen grave with the minimum depth of 0.50 m.
- There must be no objections to this from a nature conservation or water law point of view.
- There must be an important, generally comprehensible personal connection of the deceased person to the property or to a person who has already died and is buried on the property.
Where & how do I get permission for burial outside the cemetery?
You must submit an application to the competent district administrative authority.
The district administrative authority responsible is the one in whose local jurisdiction the plot of land where the urn is to be interred is located. For plots of land in the city of Innsbruck, the Referat Grundverkehr is responsible.
What documents and info are required for approval?
- Name, date of birth and contact details of the person authorized to dispose
- Name, date of birth and contact details of the persons concerned
- Place of burial: property number, cadastral municipality, property address, property owner
- Justification in the sense of § 33 Para. 2 lit. a Community Sanitary Services Act:
- A weighty, generally comprehensible personal close relationship of the deceased person to the property or to a person already deceased and buried on the property (e.g. deceased person was owner of the property)
- Not sufficient are visits of the deceased person to the property, or the former personal feeling of the deceased person to see beauty in the property.
- Site plan with marking of the burial place
- Declaration of consent of the landowner (if not identical with the applicant)
- written declaration of the deceased person during his or her lifetime or credible evidence of the presumed will of the deceased person to be buried outside a cemetery