Final disposition of the decedent may not be made until authorized by the attending health care professional or medical examiner. Certification of the cause of death must be obtained from the attending physician and in some cases, the Office of the Medical Examiner before the death certificate can be registered. Once you have obtained medical certification the death certificate will be filed, registered and necessary permits will be issued.

Utah Code 26-2-17 (1) dictates “A dead body or dead fetus may not be interred or otherwise disposed of or removed from the registration district in which death or fetal death occurred or the remains are found until a certificate of death is registered.”