Private Burials

August 2010, updated April 2023

Death Occurring in Colorado: 

1. The funeral director, or person acting as such, properly completes a Certificate of Death and registers it with the Local Office of Vital Statistics, in the county where death occurred.
2. The Local Office of Vital Statistics issues the Disposition Permit and the instruction sheet/affidavit.
3. The funeral director or person acting as such is responsible for ensuring the remains are properly embalmed or refrigerated if disposition does not occur within 24 hours of death.
4. The owner of the property where burial is planned must:
   1. Check with City and County agencies to ensure that local ordinances and requirements are met. The disposition permit does not supersede other legal requirements for burial and/or cremation on private property (meaning not an established cemetery or crematory), such as city/county ordinance, land use regulations, covenants, etc. The landowner and/or funeral director is responsible for determining if such requirements or restrictions exist, prior to final disposition. Some suggested agencies:
      1. County Coroner
      2. County Health Department, Environmental Health
      3. County Community Development Department/Zoning Office
      4. City Assessor/Zoning Office
   2. Complete a Private Burial Affidavit with the information required per Colorado Revised Statute 25-2-111.
   3. Record the original Private Burial Affidavit with the County Clerk and Recorder office in the county or counties where the property is located within 30 days of burial. As of January 1, 2017, the first page is $13, each additional page is $5. 
5. The funeral director, or person acting as such, completed the bottom portion of the disposition permit and returns it to the issuing Local Office of Vital Statistics.

Death Occurring Outside Colorado:

Follow steps 3 and 4, listed above.

Resources

Are Graves Really 6 Feet Deep? - Article from verywellHealth

Other private burial options include a natural cemetery and a green cemetery. The difference between these two are minor, but basically a green burial’s main goal is to have the least negative impact on the environment. Some green cemeteries offer different products for burial such as tree pods. A natural burial, much like a green burial, does not use embalming or chemicals to preserve the remains but it will use biodegradable materials to bury the body, like a simple pine box or burial shroud. There are multiple natural and green cemeteries here in Colorado to choose from.