Funeral Wishes and Preferences Sheet

Who this is for

Your own funeral, in your own words. The sheet records what you would like, how much each point matters to you and who should be told, so the people arranging things later are not left to guess.

Anyone who wants to spare their family decisions at a hard time, and people with particular religious, cultural or personal wishes they want written down.

What this helps you track

• Burial or cremation, and any place you have in mind
• The kind of service, if any, and where
• Music, readings, flowers or donations
• How strongly you feel about each choice
• The people you want told, and how to reach them

How to use it

1. Write your name, the date and who holds a copy of the sheet.
2. Work down the preferences table, adding the detail you want and marking each as must, would like or no view.
3. Add any further requests on the blank lines, such as dress, transport or a gathering afterwards.
4. List the people you want told in the second table, with a phone number or email for each.
5. Give copies to your next of kin and executor, note any prepaid plan or burial plot papers, and redo the sheet if your wishes change. The online version saves in your own browser.

Formats

• Printable PDF (A4 and US Letter)
• Fillable PDF with form fields
• Fill in online, saved in your browser

The printable is laid out inside a box that fits both A4 and US Letter, so the two files are identical and neither one is scaled. The fillable PDF has real form fields. The online version keeps what you enter in your own browser and builds the completed PDF on your device.

How to print

Download the A4 or US Letter file to match the paper in your printer, open it in a PDF reader and print at 100% — not "fit to page", which shrinks the writing space. Both files leave a 14 mm margin, which clears the unprintable edge on home printers. To print the online version with your entries in it, use the Print this sheet button, which prints only the sheet and none of the page around it. More on printing.

Questions

Are these wishes binding on my family?

That depends on where you live and on the wish itself, so check the rules where you are. In practice a written sheet mainly helps by removing guesswork for the people making the arrangements.

What does the importance column do?

It lets you say which points really matter and which are only a preference. Marking some as would like or no view gives the family room to adapt without feeling they let you down.

I have a prepaid funeral plan. Should I still fill this in?

Yes. Note the provider and where the plan documents are in the checklist notes. The plan may cover the arrangements while this sheet covers the personal details a plan does not ask about.

Who should have a copy?

Whoever is likely to arrange the funeral, and your executor if you have one. A sheet found only after the funeral is no help, so avoid keeping the only copy somewhere that is opened late.