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Disclaimer / Limitations
This country’s legal measures were reviewed by our legal staff in consultation with in-country lawyers and/or CRVS legal experts. All efforts were made to ensure the accuracy of the legal analysis, however, if you consider there to be any discrepancies or if there have been changes in the law of the country since our staff last updated the legal analysis, we welcome any additional information or insights. Please contact us via this form.
Cause of Death
Sri Lanka
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Sri Lanka
Cause of Death
Compulsory Certification
Compulsory Certification
Compulsory Certification
Does the law require a cause of death (CoD) to register a death?
Cause of death information required but not an MCCD
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Ideally, every death will have a cause of death (COD) medically certified by a trained physician. However, in circumstances where a medically certified cause of death (MCCD) is not available, the death should be registered without COD information. Cause of death should never be determined by a non-medical professional. In some countries, an MCCD is a precondition for registering a death. In countries where there are not sufficient health professionals adequately trained in completing a MCCD, and in counries where many deaths occur at home, this can lead to low death registration rates. Policymakers should carefully consider whether an MCCD or COD is required to register a death, or if evidence alone of the fact of death can be submitted to the registrar.
The Births and Deaths Registration Act does not make an MCCD mandatory to register death. According to Section 30, the Form I (Declaration of Death) (in practice, Form CR2 for Declaration of Death ) must be submitted by informant to the registrar and this form contains a line for "Cause of death". Under Section 31, a medical personnel who last attended the decedent is required by law to transmit an MCCD to the registrar directly.
Since a Form B33 (MCCD) is only issued by hospitals in cases where decedent died under medical supervision, and Form B33 is given to the family of decedent to be taken along with form CR2 (Declaration of Death) to register death, the cause of death (COD) line on Form CR2 is filled out by non-medical persons. This is not recommended practice, since only a medical professional should fill out COD information on any form.
Does the law clearly state who is responsible for medically certifying cause of death, for natural deaths occurring in a health facility?
Yes. Medical officer who attended the deceased during last illness.
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Legislation should state what entity and person is responsible for certifying cause of death based on the circumstances of the death. For natural deaths that occur in health facilities, the head of the health facility should be required by law to ensure a death is medically certified. Ideally, the certifier of the cause of death should be the physician or surgeon who attended the decedent during their terminal illness, although in countries that lack a sufficient number of medical doctors to staff health facilities, a nurse or other health professional may be trained to certify cause of death.
Under Section 31 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act, the medical officer who attended the deceased during last illness is obligated to issue a medical certificate of cause of death (MCCD). For deaths that occur in hospitals, the medical officer issues a Death Declaration Form (Form B33) which contains cause of death information, including underlying causes of death. It is an offence under Section 65 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act if the medical officer who last attended the deceased, fails to issue an MCCD.
Does the law designate a certifier of cause of death, for natural deaths occuring under medical supervision but outside a health facility?
Yes. Medical officer who attended the deceased during last illness.
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
For a home-based death due to natural causes, a certifier may include a doctor, nurse, or other trained health professional who attended the deceased during that person’s illness.
Under Section 31 of the Births and Deaths Registration Act, the medical officer who attended the deceased during last illness is obligated to issue a medical certificate of cause of death. For medically attended deaths outside of a health facility, the law requires the medical practitioner to complete Form J. However, in practice, the medical practitioner writes the cause of death on their own letterhead. Under Births and Deaths Registration Act, the distinction between death in a health facility or outside one, does not absolve a medical practitioner of their legal obligation to issue an MCCD, as long as the death occurred under medical supervision.
Does the law clearly state who is responsible for medically certifying cause of death when deaths are unnatural or suspicious, or otherwise referred to the MLDI authority?
No
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Deaths due to unnatural causes (such as accident, self-harm or violence); man-made or natural disasters; suspiciouos causes, or where CoD cannot be determined by the attending physician should be referred to the Medicolegal Death Investigation (MLDI) authority for medical certification of cause of death. The coroner may be responsible for certifying cause of death in cases of unnatural death.
In the case of suspicious or sudden deaths, Section 373(1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, states that a Magistrate or Inquirer into Sudden Deaths may "if he considers it expedient" refer a case for a post-mortem by a medical officer. The medical officer in such cases then informs the Magistrate or Inquirer into Sudden Deaths of the cause of death. Therefore, medical certification of cause of death is not required for all unnatural or suspicious deaths because it is based upon the discretion of the Magistrate or Inquirer ordering post-mortem examinations.
