Someone has died. Here's where to start.

Documents and the order to do things in

Three documents come up in almost every case in Germany. It helps to understand them early, rather than chasing each one under pressure:

• Death certificate (Sterbeurkunde) — issued by the registry office once the death is registered. Order several copies, since banks, insurers, and the probate court each want their own original.
• Grant of probate (Erbschein) — a court document confirming who the heirs are. Usually only needed if there's no notarised will with an official reading protocol. Applying at the probate court can take weeks.
• Power of attorney beyond death — if the deceased granted one, it lets you keep making necessary payments, such as for the funeral, without waiting for a grant of probate.

A sensible order: get the death certificates first, then notify the bank and insurers, then work out whether you need a grant of probate. Digital accounts and contracts come after that — they rarely disappear if you wait a little.

Platforms such as email providers and social networks generally ask for proof of death, usually a death certificate, before granting next-of-kin access. The legal position is clear: Germany's Federal Court of Justice ruled in 2018 (case III ZR 183/17) that digital accounts pass to the heirs just like any other asset — so heirs are generally entitled to access, even if getting there takes time.