When someone dies: the first steps, in order

Key points

In Peninsular Malaysia a death must be reported to the Registrar within seven days; after that it needs the Registrar-General’s written authority (Act 299 ss 19, 21).
EPF may release all of a deceased member’s savings, and members may nominate who receives them (Act 452 s 54(1)(a), (1A)).
An estate of up to RM5 million with no will is a “small estate” handled by an Estate Distribution Officer (Act 98 ss 3, 8).
Amanah Raya can administer movable property worth up to RM600,000 without a court grant (Act 532 s 17).
Debts and funeral expenses are paid before anything is distributed (Act 98 s 13(1); Act 97 s 68(2)).

The steps at a glance

Medical certificate of the cause of death. A registered medical practitioner who attended the person in the last illness must sign and deliver a certificate within seven days of the death, to the person who must report it or to the Registrar (Act 299 s 22(1)).
Register the death with the Registrar within seven days (Act 299 s 19(2)), and receive the Certificate of Death (s 25).
Look for a will, wasiat, nominations and policies, and list assets and debts. Who may apply and where depends on whether there is a will and what the estate contains (below).
Claim EPF and SOCSO benefits that arise on death (Act 452 s 54; Act 4 ss 20A, 29).
Choose the route: small-estate petition (Act 98), Amanah Raya summary administration (Act 532), or High Court probate or letters of administration (Act 97).
Muslims: where the officer or court distributing the estate must decide the heirs and their shares, the Syariah Court can certify them (Act 505 s 50, Federal Territories).
Pay funeral expenses and debts, then distribute (Act 98 s 13(1); Act 97 s 68(2)).

Registering the death (Peninsular Malaysia)

The Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957 (Act 299) applies to Peninsular Malaysia only (s 1(2)). Every death and its cause must be registered (s 18).

Who may report it (“qualified informants”): a relative present at the death or in attendance during the last illness; another relative living or present in the area; anyone present at the death; the occupier of the house, or anyone living in it, who knew of the death; anyone who found or took charge of the body; and the person arranging the burial or cremation (s 19(1)).
Who must report it, in order: first the relative present at the death or during the last illness; if none, the other relatives; if none, anyone present at the death or the occupier; and only if none of these, the others listed (s 19(2)).
Deadline: before the end of seven days from the death, giving the required particulars and signing the register in the Registrar’s presence (s 19(2)). Once one qualified informant has done this, the others are discharged; the duty does not apply if an inquest or inquiry into the death is held (s 19(2), proviso).
Late registration: after seven days, the death can be registered only with the Registrar-General’s written authority, on the prescribed fees and conditions; the Registrar-General may waive the fees in whole or part (s 21).
Certificate: the Registrar gives a Certificate of Death to the person who gave the information (s 25).
Offence: a person with a duty to give information about a death who fails to do so (and it is not given) may be fined up to RM20,000 or imprisoned up to three years, or both (s 35(e)).

EPF savings and SOCSO benefits

EPF. The EPF Board may authorise the withdrawal of all the money standing to the credit of a member who has died, on terms and conditions it prescribes (Act 452 s 54(1)(a)). Subject to the regulations and rules, a member may make a nomination for payment of the credit after death (s 54(1A)).
SOCSO survivors’ pension. Payable if the insured person was receiving an invalidity pension, or was under 60 and had completed a full or reduced qualifying period (Act 4 s 20A(1)). It goes to the widow or widower for life (two or more widows share the widow’s share equally) and to each child until marriage or age 21, whichever is earlier; a child who cannot support himself or herself continues to be paid, and SOCSO may continue it for a child studying for a first degree (s 20A(1)). If there is no widow, dependent widower or child, it goes to the widowed mother and other dependants (s 20A(2)). The rates are in the Eighth Schedule.
SOCSO funeral benefit. Payable if the insured person died from an employment injury, while receiving disablement benefit or invalidity pension, or under 60 after completing a qualifying period (s 29(1), (3), (4)). It is paid to one or more of: the widow (widows share equally), the widower, the eldest surviving son or adopted son, the eldest surviving daughter or adopted daughter, or the parents (sharing equally) (s 29(1)). If there is none of these, whoever actually paid for the funeral receives the funeral expenses or the prescribed amount, whichever is less; that claim must be made within three months of the death or any extended period allowed (s 29(2)). The amount is prescribed by regulations.

Which route to distribute the estate

Route	When it fits	Key rules
Small estate — Estate Distribution Officer (Act 98)	The person died without a will (intestate) leaving property worth not more than RM5 million in total (ss 3(2), 8(1)).	Value is taken at the date of the first petition, without deducting debts; property held only as trustee is left out, but land registered in the deceased’s name counts (s 3(3)–(4)). A beneficiary, creditor or purchaser may petition the Estate Distribution Officer in any state where the property is (s 8(1)), handing over title documents (s 8(2)). If a probate petition with a will has been filed in the High Court, the petition is struck out (s 8(9)); if the estate is not small, it is transferred to the High Court (s 8(7)).
Summary distribution (Act 98)	The petition covers only movable property worth not more than RM600,000 (s 8B(1)(a)).	The petitioner may ask the Estate Distribution Officer for a summary distribution order; the petition is then not heard (s 8B(1), (3)).
Amanah Raya summary administration (Act 532)	Movable property in Malaysia worth not more than RM600,000 (no deduction for debts), with or without a will, where no one is entitled to apply for probate or no petition for letters of administration is pending (s 17(1)).	On a claimant’s application the Corporation may declare that it will administer the property, and then acts as if it had letters of administration (s 17(1)). Up to RM50,000 it may hand the property to the claimant on oath or other evidence (s 17(2)(a)). Up to RM5,000, where the beneficiaries are of small means, it must administer the estate (s 18(1)). It does not apply to property covered by Part III or IV of Act 98 (s 17(6)).
High Court — probate or letters of administration (Act 97)	There is a will (probate to the executor it appoints, s 3(1)), or the estate is not a small estate.	Where there is no will, letters of administration go, if applied for, to one or more of the persons interested in the residuary estate, unless insolvency or special circumstances make another person better (s 30).

For more detail see Wills and estates and Small Estates (Distribution) Act 1955.

At the small-estate hearing

Evidence is taken on oath, and anyone claiming an interest may cross-examine (Act 98 s 12(1)).
The officer finds out which religious or customary law governs the estate and decides who the beneficiaries are and their shares (s 12(4), (7)), and works out estate duty, funeral expenses and debts (s 12(5)).
A beneficiary who cannot attend may be asked to send a letter of consent in the prescribed form; if it is not sent, the officer may conclude the hearing anyway (s 12(11)–(12)).
The order pays estate duty, funeral expenses and debts first (selling property if needed), then divides the rest. Before distributing a Muslim’s estate, where a law on baitulmal is in force, the officer must be satisfied that any baitulmal share is paid or provided for (s 13(1)).
A minor’s or a person of unsound mind’s share in land is registered in a trustee’s name and protected by a caveat (s 13(2)). If the estate is or may be insolvent, letters of administration go to a fit person for the creditors, or the estate is administered in bankruptcy (s 13(7)).

Muslims: the inheritance certificate

In the Federal Territories, when a court or authority other than a Syariah court (for example, the High Court or an Estate Distribution Officer) must determine who is entitled to share in a deceased Muslim’s estate and in what shares, the Syariah Court may certify its findings and its opinion on the heirs and their shares. It does so at the request of that court or authority, or on the application of a person claiming to be a beneficiary or their representative, who pays the prescribed fee (Act 505 s 50). Each state’s administration of Islamic law enactment has its own provision. See the faraid estimator for the shares.

Duties of the executor or administrator

The deceased’s property is available to pay their debts and liabilities, and a will cannot defeat creditors (Act 97 s 67(1)).
Where there is no will, the personal representatives hold land on trust to sell it (subject to s 60) and movables on trust to convert them into money, with power to postpone the sale (s 68(1)); they pay funeral, testamentary and administration expenses, debts and liabilities first, and set aside money for any legacies (s 68(2)). If there is a will, the section applies subject to it (s 68(7)).
When lawfully required, a personal representative must file an affidavit with a true and full inventory and account of the deceased’s property, and the Court can require it (s 62).

Laws cited on this page

Act 4	Employees' Social Security Act 1969 Akta Keselamatan Sosial Pekerja 1969 Our guide →	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗
Act 97	Probate and Administration Act 1959 Akta Probet dan Pentadbiran 1959	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗
Act 98	Small Estates (Distribution) Act 1955 Akta Harta Pesaka Kecil (Pembahagian) 1955 Our guide →	PDF · Official ↗
Act 299	Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957 Akta Pendaftaran Kelahiran dan Kematian 1957 Our guide →	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗
Act 452	Employees Provident Fund Act 1991 Akta Kumpulan Wang Simpanan Pekerja 1991 Our guide →	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗
Act 505	Administration of Islamic Law (Federal Territories) Act 1993 Akta Pentadbiran Undang-Undang Islam (Wilayah-Wilayah Persekutuan) 1993 Our guide →	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗
Act 532	Public Trust Corporation Act 1995 Akta Perbadanan Amanah Raya 1995	PDF · PDF (BM) · Official ↗

Each law links to our mirror page: a copy of the official text captured on a known date, its version history, and the official source. Law library →

Worked examples

Example 1: Registering late after returning from abroad

Facts. Mr Tan dies at home in Ipoh. His son Wei is overseas and returns after ten days; no one has registered the death.

The law. The duty to give information within seven days fell first on a relative present at the death or during the last illness (Act 299 s 19(2)). After seven days the death can be registered only with the Registrar-General’s written authority (s 21(1)).

Outcome. Wei must obtain the Registrar-General’s written authority and pay any prescribed late-registration fee, which may be waived (s 21).

Example 2: A house and savings, no will

Facts. Puan Fatimah dies in Selangor without a will, leaving a house and savings worth RM3 million in total. Her son wants the estate distributed.

The law. An estate not exceeding RM5 million is a small estate (Act 98 s 3(2)), and a person interested as a beneficiary may petition the Estate Distribution Officer (s 8(1)). The officer applies the law governing her estate and decides the heirs and shares (s 12(4), (7)).

Outcome. Her son can lodge a small-estate petition; debts and funeral expenses are paid first and the rest is distributed by order (s 13(1)).

Examples are simplified illustrations with invented names; real cases turn on their own facts.

Questions & answers

Who has to register the death?

First, a relative who was present at the death or during the last illness; if there is none, other relatives in the area; then anyone present at the death or the occupier of the house; and only then the others listed in the Act. One informant registering it discharges everyone else (Act 299 s 19(2)).

What if we miss the seven-day deadline?

The death can then be registered only with the Registrar-General’s written authority, on the prescribed fees and conditions, and the Registrar-General may waive the fees (Act 299 s 21).

What counts as a small estate?

An estate of a deceased person not exceeding RM5 million in total value, valued at the date of the first petition without deducting debts (Act 98 s 3(2)–(4)). The small-estate petition is for people who died without a will (s 8(1)).

Can Amanah Raya handle the estate without going to court?

For movable property in Malaysia worth up to RM600,000, if no one is entitled to apply for probate or no petition for letters of administration is pending, Amanah Raya may declare that it will administer the property and then acts as if it held letters of administration (Act 532 s 17(1)).

Are debts paid before the heirs get their shares?

Yes. The Estate Distribution Officer’s order first provides for estate duty, funeral expenses and debts (Act 98 s 13(1)), and personal representatives pay funeral, testamentary and administration expenses and debts before distributing (Act 97 s 68(2)).

Who receives SOCSO’s funeral benefit?

One or more of the widow (widows share equally), widower, eldest surviving son or adopted son, eldest surviving daughter or adopted daughter, or the parents. If none of them exists, whoever paid for the funeral is reimbursed up to the prescribed amount, claiming within three months (Act 4 s 29(1)–(2)).

What is the Syariah Court’s role in a Muslim estate?

Where another court or authority must decide the heirs and their shares, the Syariah Court may certify them on that body’s request or on a beneficiary’s application and payment of the prescribed fee (Act 505 s 50, Federal Territories).

All questions & answers → · Ask your own →

This page explains the general position in Malaysia (last reviewed October 2026). It is not legal advice — check the current law and get advice on your own facts.

Sources

Wills and estates Wills, intestacy and probate (non-Muslim estates)Small Estates (Distribution) Act 1955 (Act 98)Muslim family law and Islamic estate planning Births and Deaths Registration Act 1957 Employees Provident Fund Act 1991 Employees' Social Security Act 1969