When NEA clears a block of graves at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery, the family has two routes. It can register a claim and let NEA’s own contractor exhume, cremate and store the remains at no charge. Or it can hire its own exhumation and relocation service, which must be registered with NEA and costs the family money, but lets the family choose the date, the rites and where the ashes go.
This guide takes the family through the steps in order and lists what to ask a contractor before signing.
Why NEA exhumes graves
Graves in Singapore are not kept forever. NEA’s burial, cremation and ash management page (updated 22 October 2026) says that from 1 November 1998, "the burial period for all graves will be limited to 15 years." After that, the graves are exhumed.
The same page explains what happens to the remains. Where the family’s religion allows cremation, the remains are cremated and stored in a columbarium niche. Where burial is required by religion, the remains are reburied in smaller individual plots.
NEA carries this out in phases at Choa Chu Kang Cemetery, which NEA’s facilities and services page (updated 19 January 2026) calls "the only active burial ground in Singapore".
The two routes side by side
The figures below come from NEA’s notice for the Phase 9 exhumation, which covers graves in the Chinese Cemetery.
| NEA’s contractor | Your own registered contractor | |
|---|---|---|
| Who pays | NEA pays for the exhumation, the cremation, a standard niche, a standard urn and a plaque, or for scattering | The family |
| Who sets the date | NEA, which tells the claimant | The family, within NEA’s deadline |
| Can the family watch? | Yes, on the scheduled date | Agree it with the contractor |
| Where the ashes go | An allocated niche at a government columbarium, or inland or sea scattering | A government niche, a private niche or scattering, as the family chooses |
| Rites at the grave | Not covered in NEA’s notice; ask the cemetery office | Arranged with the contractor |
| Permit | Handled by NEA | The contractor applies for an exhumation permit from NEA |
| Best for | Families who want a simple, free process | Families who want to choose the date, hold prayers and pick the final resting place |
Step 1: Find out if the grave is in a current phase
The family acts first. NEA’s Choa Chu Kang exhumation programme page (updated 14 August 2026) lists the phases now running:
- Phase 9 covers Chinese Cemetery Blocks 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D, 3E, 14E, 14F, 14G, 17, 18 and 19, with graves dating from 1965 to 1997
- Phase 10 covers blocks in the Muslim Cemetery, with graves dating from 2001 to 2009 (remains from the Muslim Cemetery are re-buried, not cremated, so the niche steps below do not apply)
The same page says Phase 9 graves have been hoarded since 1 August 2026, and the public may not enter the affected areas. Families who are unsure can contact the Choa Chu Kang Cemetery Office, which the Phase 9 notice lists at 940 Old Choa Chu Kang Road, tel 6795 5511.
Step 2: Register the claim before the deadline
Every family that wants the remains must register a claim with NEA, whichever route it takes. For Phase 9, the notice set the deadline at 30 April 2026, through a QR code or at the cemetery office. Each new phase has its own notice and its own dates, so read the notice for the grave’s block.
The notice also states what happens if nobody comes forward: all graves are exhumed and cremated, and "unclaimed ashes will be kept for three years before being scattered at sea." Registering early keeps the family’s choices open. For Phase 9, both the claim deadline and the private-contractor permit deadline have passed; a family with a grave in a later phase should act as soon as that phase’s notice is published.
Step 3: Decide between NEA’s contractor and your own
This is a family decision. Use the table above. A family may prefer its own contractor if it wants to:
- pick an auspicious date for the exhumation
- hold ground-breaking prayers and other rites at the grave
- place the ashes in a private columbarium, or beside a family member who is already in a niche
If NEA’s route suits the family, the steps end here. NEA notifies the claimant of the exhumation date, and the remains are cremated at Choa Chu Kang Crematorium the same day, according to the notice.
Step 4: Choose a registered contractor
If the family hires its own contractor, only a registered one may do the work. NEA’s facilities and services page says that from January 2021, next of kin "are to only engage contractors registered under NEA" for exhumation in NEA-managed facilities.
The law behind this is the Environmental Public Health Act, section 76, which says no body may be exhumed except in the ways it lists, one of them being written permission from NEA’s Director-General. For Phase 9, the notice required the contractor to apply for the exhumation permit by 30 April 2026 and to finish the exhumation by June 2026.
Before you sign, ask each exhumation and relocation service these questions:
- Are you registered with NEA for exhumation work?
- Will you apply for the NEA exhumation permit, and by which date?
- Can you help us choose an auspicious date inside NEA’s deadline?
- Which rites are included, such as ground-breaking prayers and prayers at the end?
- Who collects the bones, and who books the cremation?
- Is restoring and refilling the grave site included?
- Who transports the ashes, and to where?
- Can you place the ashes in a niche for us, and which columbaria do you work with?
- Can a family member be present, and will someone guide us on the day?
- Can we have the full price in writing, with every item listed?
Step 5: Choose where the ashes will go
The family decides this before the exhumation, so the urn and the niche are ready. The choices are the same as after any cremation: a government niche, a private niche, inland scattering or sea scattering. Under NEA’s route, the remains go to an allocated government niche unless the family picks scattering. Under a private arrangement, the family can choose any of them.
Our guide to where ashes can go after cremation in Singapore compares the four options side by side, and our columbarium niches page shows the niches on offer. Families who also keep an ancestral tablet can read an ancestral tablet or a niche after a cremation.
Step 6: On the day of the exhumation
The contractor leads the day. With a private arrangement, a full exhumation and relocation service usually runs in this order: the ground-breaking prayers, the exhumation, the collection of the bones, the refilling of the site, then the cremation and the placing of the ashes. Some families end with prayers at the niche. The family decides how much of the day it wants to attend.
Our guides on the prayers that come with an exhumation and relocation service and the grave exhumation process explain each part in more detail. To arrange the exhumation, the cremation and the niche with one team, see our grave exhumation and niche relocation service or start from the home page.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long is a grave kept in Singapore?
15 years. NEA says that from 1 November 1998, the burial period for all graves is limited to 15 years, after which the graves are exhumed.
Does the family pay if NEA exhumes the grave?
Not under NEA’s own route. The Phase 9 notice says NEA pays for the exhumation, cremation, a standard niche, a standard urn and a plaque, or for scattering. A private contractor is at the family’s own cost.
Can we hire any contractor to exhume a grave?
No. Since January 2021, NEA requires next of kin to use only contractors registered under NEA for exhumation in NEA-managed facilities.
How much is the NEA exhumation permit?
NEA’s facilities and services page lists a $14 fee for the written permission to exhume, but only for graves in closed cemeteries. Choa Chu Kang is an active cemetery, so ask the contractor what the permit costs for your phase.
What happens to unclaimed remains?
The Phase 9 notice says all graves are exhumed and cremated, and unclaimed ashes are kept for three years before being scattered at sea.
