Types of funeral

If the family do not already have a grave and wish to obtain one for the deceased, a new burial plot for a coffin or an urn must be reserved. The ashes can also be interred or scattered in a memorial grove without a marked grave, in which case a memorial plaque for the deceased will be attached to a shared memorial monument. The memorial plaques for the deceased whose ashes are in the Kallio church vault are attached to a wall in the church.

Residents of Helsinki can have a grave plot for 25 years after paying a redemption price. A fee is charged also for opening and filling in the grave and for its basic maintenance. War veterans registered as living in Helsinki and their spouses do not have to pay for a grave. If the deceased lived outside Helsinki, a higher price is charged for the grave.

In some parts of the cemetery, general and uniform care is organised for all the graves. A basic maintenance fee will be charged for the entire period of the exclusive burial rights when a grave is reserved in one of these areas.

Burial plots for coffins

For deceased persons registered in Helsinki, new burial plots for coffins are available in the Malmi, Honkanummi, and Östersundom cemeteries and in nondenominational area.

It is also possible to reclam a Burial plots for coffin that has returned to the ownership of the parish. In the old parts of Malmi cemetery (blocks 1-95 and 100-104) are plots that have reverted to the Helsinki parish union and are given to parisioners of Helsinki parishes and according to the 4§ of the Municipality of Residence Act to the deceased and spouses of these deceased who have been rewarded for their frontline service in the war.

Burial plots for urns

The Malmi, Honkanummi, Östersundom, and nondenominational locations provide burial plots for urns regardless of the deceased’s place of residence.

The Kulosaari cemetery is reserved primarily for parish members living in Kulosaari. All new plots there are for urns. Space in the Kallio church vault is provided only to members of the Helsinki parishes.New burial plots for urns become available in the Hietaniemi cemetery only very rarely and are provided primarily to residents of Helsinki.

Memorial groves

It is not necessary to reserve a burial plot. The Hietaniemi, Honkanummi, Kulosaari, Malmi, Maunula, and Östersundom cemeteries all have memorial groves, as does the nondenominational site. In these groves, ashes can be interred under the ground surface without an urn, with a memorial plaque mounted on a shared memorial monument.

Scattering of ashes

The Hietaniemi and Honkanummi cemeteries have separate areas where ashes can be scattered without the family being present. These areas have a shared monument for memorial plaques.

Burial in a cemetery outside Helsinki

It is also possible to arrange burial for a resident of Helsinki in a cemetery elsewhere. Some people wish to be buried in the area of their birth or near a holiday home. In such cases, the local parish must be contacted for reservation of a grave.

Burials outside a cemetery

The ashes can be buried or scattered outside a cemetery with the permission of the landowner, but no grave markers are allowed on the site. Permission to scatter the ashes at sea or on a lake must be obtained from the owner of the water area. The City of Helsinki has designated water areas west of Harmaja and north west of Rysäkivi for scattering ashes.