When you are hiking in the countryside, you may have seen some cemeteries built at the edge of the forest. In fact, most of these buildings are not for storing the intact remains of the deceased, but many of them are “urn houses” for storing the bones and ashes of the deceased. Kinta Houses are common in Hong Kong and Guangdong for the exhumation of human remains after the expiry of the period of burial in earth burial grounds (commonly known as secondary burials).
Urn Houses
Construction and Finishing Services
What is Urn Houses?
As a licensed undertaker with many years of experience in the construction of urn houses and relocation of cremains or ashes in urn house cemeteries, Paradise Se provides professional urn house construction and renovation services for relatives in need, assisting them to build urn houses at various eligible lots in Hong Kong and relocate the cremains of the deceased to the urn houses in accordance with traditional rituals, so as to enable the deceased to rest in peace and to bless their descendants. If you have any enquiries about the details of the construction or renovation services, please feel free to contact us. Our professional team at Paradise Se will provide the necessary information on the construction of the Urn Houses for the relatives who have the need for the construction of the Urn Houses.
What is Urn Houses?
Urn Houses is a small building designed to house a kinta, a traditional building that allows each family to bury the bones or ashes of all family members at the same time. After the body is buried in the burial ground, it will decay into bones over time. When the burial ground where the body is buried expires, the bones have to be relocated to the kam taps or cremated into ashes for re-interment. Many indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories may choose to relocate their cremated remains to a Urn Houses designed by their family according to their preference. Generally speaking, the Urn Houses are decorated with carvings of dragons, phoenixes and other meaningful symbols. Relocating the cremated remains or ashes to the Urn Houses will enable the family members to have a special place to rest peacefully after death, so as to benefit the descendants of the family.
Those who can bury their bones in the Urn House.
Not all Hong Kong residents can be buried in urn houses. According to the “The hillside burial policy”, only those who meet the specific eligibility criteria are allowed to build urn houses in “Authorized Funeral Areas” in the New Territories. The following are the people who can be buried in urn houses under the current Hillside burial Policy:
1. Indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories
The first category of eligible persons are those who have resided in an Indigenous Village since the British Lease of the New Territories in 1898; and the paternal descendants of the above persons (male Indigenous Villagers, their spouses and unmarried daughters). For those who intend to build Urn Houses in a Permitted Funeral Parcel, their status as an Indigenous Resident has to be confirmed by the representative of the Indigenous Villages concerned or the Rural Committee before they are allowed to have their cremated human remains interred in the Urn Houses.
2. Indigenous local fishermen
Apart from indigenous inhabitants of the New Territories, other people who make a living by fishing in Hong Kong waters and are recognized as indigenous fishermen by the relevant fishermen's community; and their paternal descendants and family members, are eligible to build a Urn Houses in an “approved funeral area” and have their cremated remains interred therein. In processing the application, the District Office will consider whether the applicant has been engaged in the agriculture and fisheries industries for most of his/her life, and the applicant has to obtain the confirmation and oath from the fishermen's representative or the Rural Committee, and upon confirmation of his/her identity, he/she will be allowed to have his/her cremated remains interred in the Urn Houses.
Location of Recognized Funeral Places
According to the “hillside burial policy” formulated by the Hong Kong Government, those who intend to build a urn house should build it in an area that has been designated as a “Recognized Funeral Area” (RFA), which is mostly located in the New Territories and the outlying islands, and the following are the major distribution areas of the RFA:
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Yuen Long
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Tuen Mun
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Northern Area
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Tsuen Wan
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Shatin
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KwaiTsing
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Tai Po
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Sai Kung
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Island
If you would like to further confirm the exact location of the “Approved Funeral Area”, you may visit the “hillside burial” dedicated website of the Home Affairs Department, or use the mobile application “MyMapHK” provided by the Lands Department, to find out the location of the gravesite in the approved funeral area available for application.
Procedures for the construction of Urn Houses
To apply for the construction of a Urn Houses in a Recognized Burial Area, the following procedures need to be completed:
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Application forms can be obtained through the following channels:
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In person at District Offices (DOs)
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Download from the Home Affairs Department (HAD) website
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Fill in the e-form on the HAD website
Fill in the application form
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Bring along the following documents or information and visit the District Office to complete the application procedures:
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Completed application form
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Identity cards of the applicant and the deceased
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Death certificate of the deceased
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Identity documents issued by recognized indigenous residents or fishermen
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Sworn declaration of the applicant
Relevant formalities at District Offices
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When submitting an application for the construction of a urn house, the applicant should select the exact location of the urn house in advance from the “Hillside Burial” thematic webpage of the Home Affairs Department and “MyMapHK”, a mobile application provided by the Lands Department, and submit the location of the urn house when submitting the application.
Selection of a suitable site for the construction of a Urn Houses
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The District Office will publish a cemetery location map according to the location of the applicant's chosen burial site, showing clearly to the applicant the exact location of the urn house where the deceased will be buried. Once the applicant confirms that the information on the location of the site is correct, he/she can sign on the application document for the finalization of the construction of the urn house.
The District Office confirms the location of the Urn Houses to the applicant.
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After the District Office has verified the content of the application and approved the application, the applicant will be issued with a burial permit and a location plan of the cemetery. After checking the relevant information, regulations and points to note, the applicant can then follow all the requirements known at the time of application to bury the bones of the deceased in the relevant urn house according to the location of the urn house confirmed at the time of application.
Finalizing applications and arranging construction works
Points to note in relation to the application for the construction of Urn Houses
The following are the points to note when applying for the construction of a Urn Houses and the relocation of the bones of the deceased to the Urn Houses.
1. Strict compliance with the requirements provided by the District Office
The applicant shall comply with the requirements stipulated by the Home Affairs Department (HAD) in the burial permit. Otherwise, the HAD has the right to revoke the permit for the construction of the urn house, and the body, remains or ashes of the deceased will have to be exhumed or relocated to another place for burial, and all the related expenses will have to be borne by the applicant himself/herself at the time.
2. The burial permit number shall be clearly stated.
Upon completion of the construction of the Urn Houses and installation of the bones of the deceased, the applicant is required to have the burial permit number of the deceased clearly engraved or written on the monument, Urn Houses, and the container of the ashes.
3. Only the bones of the designated deceased may be buried.
The applicant is not allowed to build a Urn House for the burial of the bones or remains of an ancestor other than those specified in the permit within the approved area of the burial permit issued. If the bones of another family member are to be buried in the same Urn Houses building, a separate application has to be made to the Home Affairs Department.
4. Prior notification to District Offices is required before repairs or additions are carried out
If there is a need for reburial, reconstruction or repair of the registered Urn House in the future, prior application should be made to the District Officer for approval before the commencement of any works; if the works involve relocation or exhumation, the applicant should also apply to the Food and Environmental Hygiene Department for approval.
Paradise Se —Specialist in Construction and Repair of Urn Houses
As one of the licensed undertakers in Hong Kong, Paradise Se has many years of experience in relocating the remains and skeletons of the deceased to urn house cemeteries, and also provides professional urn house construction and renovation services to help relatives to bury the skeletons of the deceased in urn houses in various “recognized funeral districts” in Hong Kong, so that the deceased can rest in peace in their own family graves forever, and to bless the future generations. If you have any enquiries about the construction or repair of the urn house, please feel free to contact us, our professional team will provide the relevant information on the construction or repair of the urn house and complete the construction of the urn house for you.