Funeral and burial laws in New Hampshire

• No state requires embalming in every case. Federal law, the FTC Funeral Rule, forbids a funeral home from telling you it does.
• No state law requires a casket for cremation, and the funeral home must offer an alternative container. Vault requirements come from cemeteries, not statutes.
• Checked against the sources at the bottom of this page on 2026-09-07. Laws change. Confirm any hour threshold with the funeral home or the state board before relying on it.

Is embalming required in New Hampshire?

Never required for a family caring for its own dead. RSA 325:40-a (no public exposure over 24 hours unless embalmed) was repealed effective August 16, 2022. RSA 325:40-b (2022), 'If final disposition has not occurred within 48 hours after the funeral home obtains actual physical custody of the body, the body shall be embalmed or maintained at a temperature of under 40 degrees Fahrenheit or encased in a closed container with methods employed to prevent leakage,' so the trigger is funeral-home custody and refrigeration or a sealed container is an accepted alternative. Board rule Frl 404.03, a body entombed for 24 hours or more must be embalmed (licensee rule). No common-carrier, out-of-state or disease embalming trigger was found (RSA 5-C:68 says no separate permit is needed for common-carrier transport; RSA 290:2-a only requires noting a contagious disease on the record).

How long can you wait before burial or cremation in New Hampshire?

No statutory deadline for burial or cremation. The only hour rule is RSA 325:40-b, 48 hours after a funeral home takes physical custody, then embalm, hold under 40 F, or seal in a closed container; Frl 404.03 requires embalming for entombment of 24 hours or more (licensees). A body kept at home by next of kin has no statutory hour limit. Related clocks, medical certification within 36 hours of death (RSA 5-C:64), death record filed within 36 hours of receiving the body (RSA 5-C:66, VI), return or removal permit within 36 hours for a body moved to another town for preparation (RSA 290:11, II), no cremation within 48 hours of death (RSA 325-A:18), burial permit returned to the town clerk within 6 days after burial (RSA 290:6).

Can you bury someone on private land in New Hampshire?

Legal by statute with siting rules. RSA 289:3, II, burials on private property not in an established burial ground must comply with local zoning; where none exists they must meet RSA 289:3, I, no burial within 100 feet of a dwelling, schoolhouse, school lot, store or place of business without the owner's consent, and none within 50 feet of a known water source or a state highway right-of-way; and 'the location of the burial site shall be recorded in the deed to the property upon transfer of the property to another person.' RSA 289:5 requires the owner to record the site and give a copy to the municipal cemetery trustees; RSA 289:3, III bars new construction within 25 feet of a known burial site. A burial permit is required (RSA 290:5, 290:8), obtainable by next-of-kin or a designated agent (RSA 290:3) and returned to the town clerk within 6 days (RSA 290:6). No state depth rule. Check town zoning first.

Even where state law allows it, the county or town usually has the last word through zoning, and a burial on private land should be recorded against the deed so a future buyer knows. A family burial ground can also complicate a later sale.

Can the family handle it without a funeral director?

Yes, next-of-kin or a designated agent stand equal to a funeral director at every step. RSA 290:11, I, a body may be released from a residence, hospital or facility to a funeral director, the next-of-kin (RSA 290:16, IV) or the designated agent (RSA 290:17); RSA 290:12, the transfer is made under the direction of a funeral director, next-of-kin or designated agent who leaves a written record; RSA 290:11, II, transfer to another town for preparation, burial or cremation under the same persons' direction, if death was not sudden or violent, with return or a removal permit within 36 hours; RSA 5-C:66, VI, those persons file the death record within 36 hours of receiving the body; RSA 290:3, they obtain the burial permit; RSA 290:13, a body with a permit may pass through or into another town without more permits; RSA 5-C:68, no separate permit for common-carrier transport; RSA 5-C:70, emergency permits go to licensed funeral directors, next of kin or the designated agent. Others' roles, cause of death certified by the physician, advanced practice registered nurse, physician associate or medical examiner (RSA 5-C:64); pronouncement before release from a facility (RSA 290:2-a); cremation only in a licensed crematory with the examiner certificate and 48-hour wait (RSA 325-A:18, 5-C:71).

Death certificate and permits in New Hampshire

Filing the death certificate

RSA 5-C:63, a hospital or facility gives the funeral director or next of kin a partially completed record and physician contact before release; outside a facility the funeral director or designated agent who takes custody initiates the record. RSA 5-C:64, the attending physician, advanced practice registered nurse or physician associate completes the medical certification no later than 36 hours after death unless the case goes to the medical examiner. RSA 5-C:66, VI, 'the funeral director, next of kin, or designated agent shall file all death record information within 36 hours of receiving the body and prior to final disposal.' Filing is electronic; town clerks can enter records for families. If data cannot be obtained in 36 hours an emergency burial permit issues and the data is due within 6 calendar days of death, extendable once by 6 days (RSA 5-C:70).

Burial or transit permit

Required. RSA 290:5, no interment or entombment without a permit; RSA 290:8, no permit until a completed death record reaches the Division of Vital Records Administration; RSA 5-C:67, a town or city clerk or a funeral director supplies the permit information and the Division issues the burial permit on receipt of the completed record. RSA 290:3, the funeral director, next-of-kin or designated agent obtains it, so a family member may. RSA 290:6, the permit is completed and forwarded to the town clerk within 6 days after burial. RSA 290:13, one permit covers passage through or into another town; RSA 5-C:68, no separate permit for common-carrier transport; RSA 290:11, II, a body moved to another town for preparation must return or have a permanent removal permit within 36 hours. Emergency permits (RSA 5-C:69, 5-C:70, 290:3-b) are limited to licensed funeral directors, next of kin or the designated agent.

Cremation waiting period in New Hampshire

48 hours. RSA 325-A:18, I, no body may be cremated within 48 hours after death unless death was from a contagious or infectious disease, and the crematory must first hold a medical examiner's certificate that he or she made personal inquiry into the cause and manner of death; RSA 5-C:68 repeats the 48 hours and the separate examiner cremation certificate; RSA 5-C:71, the crematory or funeral director presents the death certificate and burial permit to the examiner to obtain the certificate and may not cremate without it plus the burial permit, with copies afterward to the town clerk and the Chief Medical Examiner. Authorization vests under RSA 290 (RSA 325-A:17), the person the decedent designated in writing (RSA 290:17), otherwise next-of-kin in RSA 290:16, IV order, spouse, adult child, parent, adult sibling, adult grandchild, adult niece or nephew, then grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins; the agent signs the cremation authorization form (RSA 325-A:22). Unclaimed remains may be disposed of after 60 days (RSA 325-A:27).

Caskets and vaults

No. No statute or rule read requires a casket for burial or an outer burial container or vault; RSA 289 and 290 contain none, so vaults are cemetery policy. For cremation RSA 325-A:21, III and IV require delivery in an alternative container or casket, the alternative container being readily combustible and resistant to leakage, so cardboard or fiberboard qualifies. Frl 404.03 requires casket labeling and embalming for entombment of 24 hours or more (licensee rule). RSA 325:40-b allows a closed leak-proof container as an alternative to embalming or refrigeration after 48 hours of funeral-home custody.

Scattering ashes in New Hampshire

No New Hampshire statute or rule restricts where cremated remains may be kept or scattered. RSA 290 has no cremated-remains provision, and RSA 325-A covers only crematory handling and unclaimed remains after 60 days (RSA 325-A:27). Own land is fine, get permission on others' land; public land and state waters have no state rule, so town, Division of Parks and Recreation or land-manager permission is policy, unverified. Federal EPA rule at sea, 3 nautical miles offshore and notice within 30 days.

At sea, federal rules apply everywhere. The EPA allows scattering at least three nautical miles from shore and asks for a report within 30 days. Inland waters follow the state.

Your rights under the FTC Funeral Rule, in every state

Whatever New Hampshire adds, federal law requires any funeral home to give you an itemised price list before you agree to anything, to quote prices over the phone if you ask, to let you buy only the items you want rather than a package, and to accept a casket or urn bought elsewhere without a handling fee. It also forbids claiming that embalming, a casket for cremation, or a vault is required by law when it is not.

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