Does funeral insurance cover a death overseas?

Written by Henry Smith · Reviewed by Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931) · Updated 2026-10-20 · Reviewed quarterly, when the underlying data is restated.

Financial advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). QuoteHub is a trading name.

Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance covers a New Zealander 24 hours a day, wherever in the world they die, provided they were a New Zealander when the cover was issued. The benefit is the same fixed amount, $3,000 to $30,000, and it does not arrange or pay for repatriation. The first 24 months still pay only for accidental death.

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Funeral cover: Only accidental death is covered for the first 2 years. Total premiums can add up to more than the cover, and it may not meet the whole cost of a funeral.

Life cover: Conditions you already have aren't covered for the first 2 years (premiums refunded instead). Suicide isn't covered for the first 2 years, and a few conditions can be excluded permanently.

Insurer: Momentum Life Limited. Financial strength rating B (Fair) from AM Best, affirmed 11 February 2026; B ratings sit in AM Best's 'vulnerable' range. The rating scale is available for inspection at every Momentum Life office in New Zealand. What this means

Already have cover? Keep it. New cover won't pay for a condition you already have in its first 2 years.

Opens Momentum Life's online application; its guidance only covers eligibility. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner. Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy. General information, not advice.

Worldwide cover means the place of death does not change whether the policy responds. It does not make the benefit a travel policy. Momentum Life's Funeral Insurance pays a lump sum to a named person in New Zealand dollars; the family then decides how to use it. Bringing a body or ashes home, or holding a funeral abroad, involves a funeral director, the rules of the sending and receiving countries, and the airline. The government's guidance says any costs must be paid for by the family. The benefit may not cover a whole funeral at home, let alone an overseas one, and total premiums can exceed the benefit. This page covers what the wording says, how a claim works from abroad, what we could and could not price, and what other money can help.

What does Momentum's wording say about being overseas?

The wording says that, providing the life insured was a New Zealander when the cover was issued, they are covered 24 hours a day, regardless of geographical location (Momentum Life: Funeral Insurance Policy Wording). In the wording, a New Zealander is someone who lives in New Zealand at the time of application and is a New Zealand or Australian citizen, holds a New Zealand permanent resident visa, or has been in New Zealand continuously for at least 12 months on a valid temporary work visa. We found no clause in the Funeral Insurance wording that requires you to tell Momentum before you travel or move abroad. Quick Life is different, as the table shows.

	Funeral Insurance	Quick Life
Worldwide cover	Yes, 24 hours a day, if a New Zealander when issued	Yes, worldwide cover 24/7
Must you tell Momentum about time abroad?	No such clause found in the wording	Tell Momentum if away more than 6 months or working overseas for any period; if you do not, it can decline cover while you are away or cancel the policy without refund
Early window	24 months: accidental death only	2 years: pre-existing conditions and suicide excluded
Benefits paid in	New Zealand dollars	New Zealand dollars

Quick Life also always excludes some dangerous jobs and pastimes, including diving deeper than 40 metres, driving or riding faster than 130km/h outside commercial flights, professional sport and active armed-forces duty (Momentum Life: Quick Life Insurance Policy Wording). Funeral Insurance lists no such exclusions.

Does the 24-month rule apply abroad?

Yes. The early window follows the person, not the place. Inside the first 24 months only accidental death pays, so a death from illness abroad pays no benefit and the premiums are refunded, exactly as it would at home. After 24 months any cause is covered. Death from an accident abroad, for example a road crash, is paid at three times the benefit at any time, if death follows within 90 days of the accident. Read the accidental death page for how the triple payout works.

What happens to the claim if the death is overseas?

The wording makes the claimant supply sufficient proof of the claim at their own expense, which may mean a medical practitioner's form, further medical information and a death certificate. A medical practitioner in the wording is one registered and licensed in New Zealand or Australia whom Momentum has accepted for this purpose. The wording does not say how a death certificate issued in another country is treated, so contact Momentum early: claims are on 0800 108 108 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm New Zealand time) or [email protected] (Momentum Life: Claims). Valid claims are paid in New Zealand dollars, usually within 24 to 48 hours of approval, to the policy owner or the nominated beneficiary, or the executor if none is named. The beneficiary must be a person: Momentum cannot pay a company, charity or other organisation, so it cannot pay a funeral director directly. Our how to claim page has the steps.

What does it cost to bring someone home?

We could not find a reliable total, so we do not print one. Here is what is sourced.

A professional fee, one director. Dils (North Shore, Auckland) lists a repatriation fee for arranging repatriation outside New Zealand of $5,950 to $7,690 in its price list as at May 2026. The list does not say what that includes (Dils Standard Price List, May 2026).
Everything else is unpriced in the sources we can name. Flights or freight, overseas fees and paperwork depend on the country and the airline. FDANZ says repatriation must meet the rules of the sending and receiving countries and the airline, and that compliance can take longer than people expect (FDANZ: Repatriation).
Ashes are simpler. FDANZ says ashes can be carried with the right paperwork, and that NZ Post will not accept ashes from the general public, with only Funeral Directors Association members exempt.

So the benefit may or may not be enough; ask a funeral director for a written quote for your situation. Our guide on repatriation costs goes deeper on the money side.

What first steps does the government suggest?

Contact the nearest New Zealand embassy or the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, which can advise on local burial or cremation and on returning remains or ashes (govt.nz: When someone dies overseas). The page also describes an optional step: depositing the original overseas death certificate with Births, Deaths and Marriages for NZ$55 (form BDM42), with a written statement for another NZ$25. That is not registration of the death. The page was last updated in September 2022, so check the fees. It also notes an urgent passport can be sought if you must travel to a funeral.

What other money can help?

Work and Income Funeral Grant. A grant may be paid if the deceased was ordinarily resident in New Zealand when they died, and the costs of moving the body back to New Zealand, or of a funeral held overseas, can be assessed if Work and Income decides they are reasonable (Work and Income: Funeral Grant when the deceased died overseas). Someone who left New Zealand permanently is not covered. The grant's headline maximum is $2,697.43, with income and asset tests, and prepaid funeral cover can affect eligibility (Work and Income: Funeral Grant). We did not find a separate higher limit for repatriation; ask Work and Income. See our guide to the Funeral Grant.
Travel insurance. It is a separate product with its own terms. If someone was travelling, check that policy for repatriation and funeral costs; we have not reviewed travel insurance here.
Moving abroad. If you are about to live overseas, see insurance when moving overseas.

Where to get advice

The buttons on this page open Momentum Life's online application. Momentum Life Limited is rated B (Fair) by A.M. Best; read its financial strength page. QuoteHub is a Momentum Life partner and Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver may receive a commission if you buy a Momentum policy; see how we are paid. Advice is provided by Craig Smith Business Services Limited, trading as Smiths Insurance & KiwiSaver, a licensed Financial Advice Provider (FSP712931). See the Momentum Life Funeral Cover page, the funeral costs section and the funeral insurance hub.