The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is offering assistance with COVID-19-related funeral expenses incurred after Jan. 20, 2020.
This financial assistance is available because of Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021 and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has brought overwhelming grief to many families," the agency said on its website. "At FEMA, our mission is to help people before, during and after disasters. We are dedicated to helping ease some of the financial stress and burden caused by the virus."
To be eligible for this assistance, the deceased must have died in the United States or a U.S. territory and have a death certificate attributing their death to COVID-19. There is no requirement for the deceased to be a U.S. citizen, non-native U.S. national or qualified alien. Foreign students, holders of temporary work visas and some other qualified aliens are not eligible to apply for the assistance.
Assistance can be up to $9,000 per funeral and a maximum of $35,500 per application per state in the case of an individual being responsible for paying for multiple COVID-19-related death expenses. FEMA will only accept one application per qualifying deceased, however, so it is important for those who paid funeral costs with another person to apply together as co-applicants.
The application must be done over the phone by an adult individual. Businesses such as funeral homes are not eligible to apply on behalf of families.
FEMA encourages having documentation organized beforehand. This should include the official death certificate and funeral expenses, as well as proof of funds received from other sources such as funeral insurance, funds provided by voluntary organizations or CARES Act assistance. Eligible documentation of expenses should have the name of the deceased, the name of the applicant, the amount paid and the date. Applicants will also need the Social Security number of the applicant and the deceased individual, date of birth of the applicant and the deceased individual, current mailing address and telephone number for the applicant, and where the deceased individual passed away.
Standard phone users can call 844-684-6333, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. EST Monday through Friday. TTY phone users can text 800-462-7585. If there are issues due to the high call volume, just call again later. There is currently no time limit to apply.
For more information, visit fema.gov/disasters/coronavirus/economic/funeral-assistance.
