Death of a U.S. Citizen

The death of any American citizen in Kyrgyz Republic should be reported immediately to the Consular Section. A Consular Officer will notify the deceased next-of-kin and inform him or her about options and costs for the disposition of remains. If the next-of-kin wishes, the consular officer can act as his or her representative with local authorities.

The Consular Section will prepare the necessary documents should the family choose to have the body returned to the U.S. Costs associated with the repatriation of remains to the U.S. are quite high and must be paid by the family. The Consular Section will prepare a Consular Report of Death, based upon the Kyrgyz death certificate, which may then be used in the U.S. to settle estate and other matters.

This document (PDF 168 KB) describes funeral and repatriation procedures in Kyrgyzstan.

Additional Resources

CDC requirements for importing human remains depend upon if the body has been embalmed, cremated, or if the person died from a quarantinable communicable disease.

At this time, COVID-19 is a quarantinable communicable disease in the United States and the remains must meet the standards for importation found in 42 Code of Federal Regulations Part 71.55 and may be cleared, released, and authorized for entry into the United States only under the following conditions:

The remains are cremated; OR
The remains are properly embalmed and placed in a hermetically sealed casket; OR
The remains are accompanied by a permit issued by the CDC Director. The CDC permit (if applicable) must accompany the human remains at all times during shipment.
- Permits for the importation of the remains of a person known or suspected to have died from a quarantinable communicable disease may be obtained through the CDC Division of Global Migration and Quarantine by calling the CDC Emergency Operations Center at 770-488-7100 or emailing dgmqpolicyoffice@cdc.gov.

Please see CDC’s guidance for additional information.