When FamilySearch receives proof of a user's death, two things occur:
- We disable their account.
- Their profile in Family Tree is marked as deceased.
When a profile is changed to deceased, the profile generally becomes publicly visible to all users of FamilySearch. Surviving family members can see a public profile and any public contributions, but they cannot inherit or gain access to a disabled account.
Notifying FamilySearch of a user's death
FamilySearch receives proof of a user's death in two ways:
- Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: A local clerk adds the death information to the deceased user's Church membership record. This information is automatically sent to FamilySearch and can appear as a duplicate profile. To learn how to merge duplicate profiles, view this article.
- Public users: A living person who knew the deceased user submits proof of death to FamilySearch Support.
For questions, please contact FamilySearch Support.
Related articles
What happens to memories submitted by a deceased user?
How do I merge possible duplicates in Family Tree?