Funeral Insurance in Spain for Expats: Decesos Explained

What "Decesos" actually is

This is the part that surprises everyone. A Spanish funeral policy is service-based, not a cash payout. Rather than handing your family a sum of money, the insurer organises and pays for the entire funeral directly through its network of funeral directors — the coffin, the ceremony, burial or cremation, transport, and all the paperwork. Your family makes one phone call and the insurer takes it from there.

Why it matters more in Spain

Two things catch expat families off guard:

• Speed. Spanish funerals usually happen within 24–48 hours of death — there's no weeks-long gap as in the UK. A grieving family suddenly has to arrange and pay for everything in a day or two, often in Spanish.
• Upfront cost and admin. Without cover, the family pays the funeral home directly and up front, then deals with Spanish bureaucracy in a language they may not speak. Decesos removes both problems.

Repatriation — the big one for expats

For many British and Irish expats, the single most important benefit is repatriation of remains. If you want to be buried or cremated back home rather than in Spain, that can cost thousands of euros to arrange privately. A funeral policy can include repatriation to the UK or Ireland, handled end to end by the insurer.

No medical questions — entry up to age 69

Unlike life insurance, a Decesos plan asks no medical questions (that lifetime shape is why decesos stands in for whole-of-life cover in Spain — compared in our term vs whole-of-life guide) — it's available whatever your state of health. The standard Generali entry limit is age 69 at joining; above that, acceptance is only by specific agreement with the insurer. That still makes it one of the few policies open to expats who can no longer get medically underwritten life cover. The one timing rule to know is the short waiting period (carencia): the funeral guarantee starts 20 days after the policy begins — waived entirely if death is the result of an accident.

How you pay: regular or one-off premium

You can pay a regular (monthly or annual) premium, or in some cases a single one-off premium (prima única) that settles the policy for life — popular with older clients who want it dealt with once. Cover includes your choice of burial or cremation.

That single-premium option is also the honest answer for anyone tempted by a UK-style prepaid funeral plan on the costas: the same pay-once certainty, but inside Spain's regulated insurance system. Prepaid plans themselves are unregulated in Spain — our guide to prepaid funeral plans vs funeral insurance explains what that has meant for families when providers failed.

Funeral insurance is not life insurance

They're often confused. Funeral insurance (Decesos) provides the funeral as a service. Life insurance pays a cash lump sum to your beneficiaries to use as they wish. Many expats hold both — life cover for the family's financial security, funeral cover so nobody has to organise or fund the funeral. For the cross-border issues around life cover, see our life insurance guide.

Inheritance tax and the practicalities

Because a funeral plan delivers a service rather than a cash sum to the estate, its inheritance-tax position differs from a life payout — but tax always depends on your circumstances and region, so take advice. Practically, when the time comes your family calls the insurer's 24-hour line, quotes the policy, and the funeral is arranged from there. The rest of the estate — bank accounts, the will, the notary — follows its own timetable: see what happens to your estate when you die in Spain. You can usually add a spouse or partner to the same policy.

Sort it once, in English

As authorised Generali agents in Javea, we arrange funeral (Decesos) cover for expats across Spain — burial or cremation, repatriation to the UK or Ireland, regular or single-premium, with English-speaking support. For a free, no-obligation quote, see our funeral insurance page, contact us, or call 966 461 625.

Frequently asked questions

Sources & references

• Dirección General de Seguros y Fondos de Pensiones (DGSFP) — the Spanish insurance regulator.
• GOV.UK — Death abroad and bringing a body home.
• Life insurance in Spain guide — how funeral cover and life cover differ.

This guide is general information, not personalised advice. Cover, options and tax treatment vary by policy, region and circumstances. For advice on your situation, contact Turner Insurance.