Plain guides for Ukrainian families who live abroad and still have parents, a grave or property in the Vinnytsia region. Written by people who do this work every day in Dzhuryn, not by a copywriter.
Guides
How to arrange a funeral in Ukraine from abroad
The first hours, the two documents that matter, why the burial happens on the third day and how to move that date, taking part in the service by video, the truth about repatriation, and how to pay from another country.
Grave care in Ukraine while you live abroad
What a visit actually includes, how many visits a year make sense and why, what a before and after photo report looks like, what we will not do without the family agreeing, and what to do with a plot nobody has touched for ten years.
After the funeral: documents your family will need
The six month deadline for accepting an inheritance, which notary opens the file, how to act from abroad by power of attorney or through a consulate, and the documents that trip families up.
If you need something now
These guides are for reading calmly. If something has already happened and you need help today, do not read, call. We answer at any hour, every day of the year.
We speak Ukrainian and basic English. If English is easier for you, write on Viber or WhatsApp instead of calling, and we will reply in writing.
Where you are living now
From Poland
The road, the border queues, the apostille for Polish institutions and paying in zloty.
From the Czech Republic
Routes through Lviv, how long the journey really takes and how to send money.
From Germany
Flying to Poland and continuing overland, apostille and sworn translation.
From Italy
The longest European road and what to do when you cannot make the third day.
From Canada and the USA
When travelling in time is impossible: video link, photo report, a visit on the fortieth day.
From the United Kingdom
Via Warsaw or Rzeszow, the documents, and grave care from a distance.
Talk to us
Dzhuryn, Vinnytsia region. Our main area is the Dzhuryn community, and we travel further when needed.
Death certificate and the apostille you will need abroad
How the certificate is issued in Ukraine, why an apostille is required, how long it takes, in which order translation happens, and the one common mistake that gets a document refused outright.
Inheritance in Ukraine when you live abroad
The six month deadline that did not stop during the war, how to file through a consulate or a power of attorney without travelling, debts that come with an estate, and what to do if the deadline has passed.
Ordering a headstone in Ukraine from abroad
Why the stone waits about a year, which months allow installation, how to choose material and portrait from photographs, and how proofs are approved before anything is cut.
The ninth day, the fortieth day and the anniversary
How the days are counted, why the date is never moved to a weekend, what happens at each, and what you can genuinely do from another country when you cannot come.
Ukrainian funeral traditions, step by step
Why the burial is on the third day, why the body stays at home, the open coffin, the procession, the embroidered towels, the meal afterwards, and the nine and forty day structure of mourning.
Attending a Ukrainian funeral: what to wear and bring
Dress, why flowers must be an even number, whether giving money is expected, what to say to the family, and the mistakes foreign guests most often make.
The first hours: in short
If the death happened at home, call the family doctor or an ambulance so it is officially recorded. If it happened at night or at a weekend, call us straight away and we will tell you who to call in that particular village. If the person died in hospital, the medical certificate is issued there and the body can be collected once the paperwork is done.
Do not rush decisions about the coffin, wreaths or the wake in the first hours. Those are settled calmly the next day, and we will help you avoid overpaying.
How much time you have
The funeral usually takes place on the third day. The date can be moved if relatives are travelling from abroad or documents are still coming. Tell us early and we will arrange it with the cemetery and the church.
Where we work
The Dzhuryn community in Zhmerynka district, Vinnytsia region, and the neighbouring communities: Sharhorod, Murafa, Klekotyna, Derebchyn, Khomenky, Zvedenivka and the smaller villages. We travel to Chernivtsi district of the Vinnytsia region when the burial takes place in our area. More on the services page.
Cannot find the answer? Call us, we will explain in a minute.