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Ten Copies

Clerk's desk/August 30, 2026

Consular Report of Death Abroad

A U.S. citizen who dies outside the United States is not a state vital record. Start with the State Department. You may still need the foreign local death certificate.

If the death was in another country, do not write the county clerk where the person used to live. U.S. states do not keep that original. The U.S. consulate reports the death of a U.S. citizen and can issue a Consular Report of Death Abroad (CRDA or CRODA).

How to start

  • Read travel.state.gov on death abroad and on requesting a CRDA copy. Copies from 1975 on are requested with Form DS-5542, notarized, from next of kin or a legal representative for estate purposes.
  • Confirm the current fee and mailing address on that State Department page. Do not guess a dollar amount from an old blog.
  • Foreign banks and local authorities often still want the death certificate issued by that country. The CRDA does not always replace it. Ask the office that requested the paper which document they will accept.
  • This desk does not process CRDA requests and takes no cut from any courier.

A CRDA is not an apostille and not a state certified copy. Confirm the packet on travel.state.gov before you pay anyone to 'order a U.S. death certificate' for a death that happened overseas.