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Disclaimer / Limitations
This country’s legal measures were reviewed by our legal staff in consultation with in-country lawyers and/or CRVS legal experts. All efforts were made to ensure the accuracy of the legal analysis, however, if you consider there to be any discrepancies or if there have been changes in the law of the country since our staff last updated the legal analysis, we welcome any additional information or insights. Please contact us via this form.
Cause of Death
Colombia
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Colombia
Cause of Death
Medical Certification
Medical Certification
Compulsory Certification
Does the law require a cause of death (CoD) to register a death?
Yes medical certificate of cause of death required
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Ideally, every death will have a cause of death (COD) medically certified by a trained physician. However, in circumstances where a medically certified cause of death (MCCD) is not available, the death should be registered without COD information. Cause of death should never be determined by a non-medical professional.
In some countries, an MCCD is a precondition for registering a death. In countries where there are not sufficient health professionals adequately trained in completing a MCCD, and in countries where many deaths occur at home, this can lead to low death registration rates. Policymakers should carefully consider whether an MCCD or COD is required to register a death, or if evidence of the fact of death alone may be submitted to the registrar.
Yes. Although no single article expressly states that cause-of-death reporting is mandatory, Colombian law requires a medical certificate for death registration (Decree 1260 of 1970, Article 76) and this certificate necessarily includes the cause of death. Decree 1171 of 1997, Article 7 specifies who may complete and sign death certificate forms, which contain cause-of-death fields. Law 9 of 1979, Articles 519 and 522 reinforce the requirement for medical certification, and Decree 786 of 1990 mandates medical-legal autopsies to determine cause of death in violent or unclear cases. The national death certificate form requires cause-of-death information.
No. Colombian law does not allow the family or another non-medical informant to record cause-of-death information in the absence of a medically certified cause of death. The family may submit the Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) to register the death, but cause of death must come from medical certification. Decree 1260 of 1970, Article 76 requires a medical certificate to prove death. Decree 1171 of 1997, Article 7 restricts completion of MCCD to authorized health personnel. Law 9 of 1979, Article 522 allows selecting a reliable informant only when no medical certification exists, but it does not authorize the informant to provide cause of death.
Does the law clearly state who is responsible for medically certifying cause of death, for natural deaths occurring in a health facility?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
The law should state what person is responsible for certifying cause of death. The certifier may vary, based on the circumstances of the death. For natural deaths that occur in health facilities, the head of the health facility should be required by law to ensure a death is medically certified. Ideally, the certifier of the cause of death should be the physician or surgeon who attended the decedent during their terminal illness, although in countries that lack a sufficient number of medical doctors to staff health facilities, a nurse or other health professional may be trained to certify cause of death.
Yes. Colombian law clearly identifies who must medically certify the cause of death when a natural death occurs in a health facility. Decree 1260 of 1970, Article 76 establishes that the medical certificate must be issued by the physician who attended the deceased during their final illness; if that physician is unavailable, the responsibility passes to the forensic doctor, then to the public health doctor, and then to any physician holding an official medical post, in that order.
Law 9 of 1979, Article 518 requires that, when the deceased received medical care, the attending physician must issue the certificate. Law 9 of 1979, Article 524 further provides that, when the death occurs in a hospital or similar institution, the certificate must be issued by the person designated by the institution for that purpose. Additionally, Decree 1171 of 1997, Article 7 authorizes qualified health personnel (physicians, and in limited circumstances nurses, nursing assistants, or certified health promoters) to complete and sign the official death certificate form.
Does the law designate a certifier of cause of death, for natural deaths occurring under medical supervision but outside a health facility?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
For a home-based death due to natural causes, a certifier may include a doctor, nurse, or other trained health professional who attended the deceased during that person’s illness.
Yes. Colombian law designates who must certify the cause of death (MCCD) when a natural death occurs under medical supervision but outside a health facility. Decree 1260 of 1970, Article 76 states that the MCCD must be issued by the physician who attended the person in their final illness; if unavailable, the task passes to the forensic doctor, then the public health doctor, and then to any physician holding an official medical post. Law 9 of 1979, Article 518 also requires that when the deceased was receiving medical care, the attending physician must issue the MCCD, except in cases of force majeure. In remote areas without medical professionals, Decree 1171 of 1997, Article 7 allows other trained health personnel (certified nurses, nursing assistants, or trained health promoters) to complete and sign the MCCD.
Does the law clearly state who is responsible for medically certifying cause of death when deaths are unnatural or suspicious, or otherwise referred to the MLDI authority?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
Deaths due to unnatural causes (such as accident, self-harm or violence); man-made or natural disasters; suspicious causes, or where CoD cannot be determined by the attending physician should be referred to the Medicolegal Death Investigation (MLDI) authority for medical certification of cause of death. The certifier of cause of death should be the forensic physician working with the MLDI authority who conducted the post-mortem examination on the deceased.
Yes. Colombian law clearly assigns responsibility for medically certifying the cause of death (MCCD) in cases of unnatural, suspicious, or legally referred deaths. Decree 786 of 1990, Article 6 requires that a medical-legal autopsy be performed in cases of homicide or suspected homicide, suicide or suspected suicide, accidental or suspected accidental death, and in any situation where the cause of death is unclear. Decree 786 of 1990, Article 9 designates that these autopsies—and therefore the medical certification of cause of death—must be performed by forensic physicians attached to the National Institute of Legal Medicine, by doctors performing compulsory social service, by official government physicians, or by other physicians formally appointed by a competent authority. In these cases, the forensic doctor performing the autopsy is the responsible certifier of the cause of death.
Does the law provide a form to certify cause of death? If yes, does the form accord with WHO Medical Certificate of Cause of Death Form?
Yes the law provides a form for certifying cause of death that accords with WHO standard MCCD Form
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
The WHO international form of Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (WHO MCCD) is the recommended form for recording information regarding cause of death for certification of all deaths, including stillbirths and unnatural or suspicious deaths. There may be modifications to the form including addition of biographical information of the deceased in an administrative section. Countries may also modify the Manner of Death section in Frame B as appropriate for their context; however, the form should always include Frame B, including a manner of death section.
Colombian law provides an official MCCD form adopted through Resolución 435 of 2025. The form follows the WHO structure for reporting cause of death (Part I and II) and includes sections equivalent to WHO Frame B. The Colombian MCCD form does include a “probable manner of death” section, however, it differs from the WHO formulation because the categories combine natural, “not natural,” and “in study” (equivalent to "under investigation in WHO MCCD form) rather than the more detailed WHO categories (e.g., accident, homicide, suicide, etc.).
Is the same form used for all types of deaths, including natural deaths and deaths referred to MLDI?
Yes
Recommended Practice based on International Guidelines
It is recommended practice to use the same MCCD form which should be WHO MCCD compliant) for all types of deaths, including natural and unnatural deaths (and fetal deaths).
Yes. Colombia uses the same national Medical Certificate of Cause of Death (MCCD) for all types of deaths—including natural deaths, fetal and infant deaths, and deaths referred to the medical-legal authority (MLDI). The official form adopted by Resolución 435 de 2025 applies nationwide and includes fields for both natural and non-natural deaths, such as the “Probable manner of death” section, as well as dedicated sections for reporting deaths under forensic investigation.
