Ashes transport guide

Bringing ashes home from Uzbekistan

You have ashes in Uzbekistan and need to bring them home. This page covers what Uzbekistan requires before they can leave.

Get a quote to bring the ashes home

Quick reference

Allow

3-10 days to arrange

Ask a question

What does Uzbekistan require before ashes can leave?

Departure airports: TAS (Tashkent International Yunus Rajabiy Airport); SKD (Samarkand International Airport)

Carriers serving the UK: Uzbekistan Airways (seasonal direct TAS-LGW); Turkish Airlines (via Istanbul Ataturk); flydubai (via Dubai International)

Authority that must release the case: Republican Centre of Forensic Medical Expertise, Tashkent

The rules that apply on any route, and what you may do with ashes once home, are covered in bringing ashes into the UK.

What are the airline rules for carrying ashes?

What does Uzbekistan require to export ashes?

Cremation availability

Cremation may be restricted or unavailable in Uzbekistan due to religious or legal reasons. If you are dealing with ashes from a previous cremation held elsewhere, the export rules may differ. Contact us for guidance specific to your situation.

What affects the cost?

Carrying ashes home yourself is the least expensive way to bring someone back from Uzbekistan, and for many families it costs little more than the return flight they are already taking. We do not publish a figure, because what you pay depends on the case.

What changes the cost	Why
Whether the cremation has already taken place	Arranging it locally adds funeral director and crematorium involvement
Where the death happened	Distance to the nearest crematorium changes local transfer
Carrying versus shipping	Hand luggage costs nothing extra; a specialist courier is a separate arrangement
Documentation Uzbekistan requires	Export permits and translation, where they apply

Send us the details of your situation and we will give you a figure, with no obligation.

What else is worth knowing about Uzbekistan?

Tashkent has the most developed infrastructure of any Central Asian capital, which generally means faster administrative processing; the British Embassy Tashkent is experienced with repatriation cases; The Silk Road heritage tourist cities, Samarkand, Bukhara, Khiva, attract growing numbers of British visitors; deaths in these cities require transfer to Tashkent for forensic processing, typically via the national rail network or domestic flights; Uzbekistan Airways operates a direct service between Tashkent and London Gatwick, which simplifies some logistics, but cargo capacity on this route is limited and schedules change seasonally; always confirm current availability with your repatriation provider; The Fergana Valley, in eastern Uzbekistan, is politically sensitive; the valley borders Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan and has a history of ethnic tension; deaths in this region should be handled with the involvement of the British Embassy Tashkent from the outset; Extreme summer temperatures in Uzbekistan, regularly exceeding 40C in Samarkand and Bukhara, mean heat-related deaths are a risk for older or less acclimatised British travellers

medium

Full repatriation guide

Complete guide: repatriation from Uzbekistan

Official support

British Embassy in Uzbekistan: contacts and what consular staff can do

Need guidance?

We can help with ashes transport

We deal with Republican Centre of Forensic Medical Expertise, Tashkent and the local crematorium directly.

Send an enquiry

Further guidance

Official lists for Uzbekistan

Published by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office for British nationals. We are not connected to the firms listed.

Translators and interpreters, for certified translation of the death certificate and permits
Lawyers, where an estate or an investigation needs local legal advice

Sources: FCDO: death abroad · FCDO travel advice · Repatriation from Uzbekistan