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Arrange a burial

Burials are normally arranged by contacting a funeral director. A burial may be arranged independently by contacting us.

Make arrangement form

In some circumstances we may arrange a local authority funeral where no one else else has made suitable arrangements.

Buying a lair

Under Scottish Law, when you buy a lair you buy the Exclusive Right of Burial in the lair. This means that you:

  • do not own the land
  • have bought the right to be buried there
  • have the right to erect a memorial

The land stays in the ownership of the burial authority or council.

You may only purchase the Exclusive Right of Burial from us when arranging a burial or interment of ashes. We have a policy of no pre-purchasing. Burial rights may be transferred at any time on application to the council.

Changes to burial rights

From 1 March 2026, new regulations will come into force under the Burial and Cremation (Scotland) Act 2016 which relate to the duration and extension of burial rights purchased on or after 1 March 2026.

A right of burial will last for 25 years. Once the initial period is due to expire the title holder can apply to have this extended for 10 years. This can be renewed every 10 years without limit. During this period the title can be transferred to another person via our Transfer of Burial Rights process.

An application for an extension can be refused if the burial authority considers it reasonable to do so. If the right of burial is not extended, it is automatically extinguished and no further interments or memorial work can take place in relation to the lair. The lair may be considered for re-use under Sections 32 to 44 of the 2016 Act when these parts of the Act come into force.

Types of lair

Some of our cemeteries are no longer open to new lairs. Our cemeteries offer the following services:

Use our to map select a cemetery location and check service availability.

Arrange a private interment

Contact us to arrange a private interment, or scattering of cremated remains in a lair.

Private interment form

We will need a copy of the cremation certificate and the lair details.

Scattering of cremated remains

This is normally carried out by cemetery staff. Turf is removed from the grave, the ashes are scattered on the soil and the turf is relaid.