Hong Kong Ordinances

BIRTHS AND DEATHS REGISTRATION ORDINANCE - SECT 14

Information of death to be given in various cases to registrar, etc.

Caution: This is a past version. See the current version here.

(1) When a person dies in a house it shall be the duty of the nearest
relatives of the deceased present at the death or in attendance during his
last illness, and, in default of such relatives, of each person present at the
death or in attendance during the last illness, and of any occupier of the
house in which, to his knowledge, the death took place, and, in default of any
such persons, of each inmate of such house, and of the person causing the body
of the deceased to be buried, to give, to the best of his knowledge and
belief, to a registrar within 24 hours

(exclusive of the time necessary for the journey and of any intervening hours
of darkness and of general holidays as defined by the Holidays Ordinance (
Cap 149)) after such death, information of the particulars required to be
registered concerning such death, and in the presence of the registrar to sign
and submit to such registrar a register form completed with the information so
given, and such death shall be deemed to be registered in the deaths register
on the submission of the signed  register form: (Amended 80 of 1997 s. 58)
Provided that where no such informant as aforesaid is forthcoming, the person
finding the body shall within 24 hours after such finding proceed as provided
in subsection (2). [cf. 1874 c. 88 s. 10 U.K.]

(2) When a person dies in a place which is not a house, or a dead body is
found elsewhere than in a house, it shall be the duty of every relative of the
deceased, having knowledge of any of the particulars required to be registered
concerning the death, and, in default of such relative, of every person
present at the death, and of any person finding and of any person taking
charge of the body, and of the person causing the body to be buried, to give
to the officer in charge of the nearest police station, within 24 hours after
the death or the finding, such information of the particulars required to be
registered concerning the death as the informant possesses, and such
particulars shall be forthwith forwarded by the said officer to a registrar.
[cf. 1874 c. 88 s. 11 U.K.]

(3) When an inquiry is held by a coroner into the death of any person the
coroner holding the inquiry shall inquire of the particulars required to be
registered concerning the death and shall send to the Registrar within 24
hours after the termination of the inquiry, a certificate under his hand
giving information concerning the death and specifying the said particulars
and the time and place at which the inquiry was held and the Registrar shall
cause the deaths and particulars to be duly registered. When an inquiry is
held by a coroner on any dead body no person shall with respect to such dead
body or death be subject to any penalty for failing to give information in
pursuance of any other provision of this Ordinance. (Amended 57 of 1967
Schedule; L.N. 374 of 1991) [cf. 1874 c. 88 s. 16 U.K.]

(4) (Repealed 80 of 1997 s. 58)