Home - Bereavement Authority of Ontario

About the BAO

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario acts in the public interest as the government delegated regulator of the death care sector. Learn more here.

For Consumers For Professionals

For Consumers

Consumer Information Guide

For families/consumers – The BAO’s free online and printed Consumer Information Guide – A Guide to Death Care in Ontario is designed to help you make informed choices related to prearranging and arranging a funeral, burial, cremation or hydrolysis service.

For bereavement sector businesses to provide to families/consumers – Funeral establishments, transfer services, cemetery, crematorium and alternative disposition operators can order copies of this guide by completing our automated form.

View the Consumer Information Guide

File a Complaint

You may file a complaint against a business or individual licensee of the BAO using our form found on this page.

Complaints against the BAO itself may also be made through the email address indicated on this page.

Find a Licensee

In accordance with the Funeral, Burial and Cremation Services Act, 2002, the information provided on this website is offered as a public service. Although the Bereavement Authority of Ontario endeavors to ensure the information identified is both current and accurate, errors do occasionally occur and therefore complete accuracy cannot always be guaranteed.

Where possible, visitors to the website are encouraged to verify, by telephone, information with the Bereavement Authority of Ontario before taking further action. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario accepts no legal liability or other responsibility for any errors, omissions or statements on this website to which these pages connect.

Find a Licensed Operator Find a Licensed Individual

Frequently Asked Questions

See a list of the the most common questions our BAO staff regularly receive in phone calls and emails. Many of the answers to these questions and more are also found in our handy and free BAO Consumer Information Guide.

A group of people walking in a park.

Notice to the Consumer

View all notices to the Consumer

Jun 02 2025

Welcome to the Bereavement Authority of Ontario’s FAQ for families/consumers Here’s a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) that our BAO staff regularly receive in phone calls and emails. Many of the answers to these questions and more are also found in our handy and free BAO Consumer Information Guide. See page four to reference...

May 26 2025

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) provides a two-page condensed version of its free Consumer Information Guide. The overview of the guide offers information answering common questions from families about death care services. The overview is offered free of charge in 10 languages and is available at BAO-licensed establishments . (The full 24-page guide is...

Apr 15 2025

Practical tips to avoid scams, articles on historic Ontario church gravesites, death services planning – plus our free consumer guide Scams, phishing, identify frauds and privacy breaches make the news when they involve thousands of names or millions of dollars. But they hurt people one at a time – every day. As the regulator protecting...

Apr 07 2025

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) has eliminated a business licensing fee charged in relation to stillborn births. In tandem with the provincial government’s announcement in the fall removing the associated cost and simplifying the process of obtaining a certified copy of stillbirth registration, the BAO is eliminating licensing fees associated with death care services...

Jan 24 2025

It’s important that grieving families know about the persistent issue of copied or ‘pirated’ death notices and obituaries. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is asking you, as licensed professionals, to share this information with people making funeral or other bereavement care arrangements with you. There are companies continuing to make money by reposting obituaries...

Jan 10 2025

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is advising families with loved ones buried at Headford Cemetery in Richmond Hill to contact us if they have specific concerns with the condition of their loved ones’ gravesites. The BAO is currently conducting an inspection for compliance at the cemetery, located at 9550 Leslie St., Richmond Hill. People...

Dec 11 2024

Update – The Anglican Diocese of Niagara has been released from the Registrar’s Cease and Desist Order, applied to its licence on or about July 24, 2024. The Diocese may resume offering the following services: –Jim Cassimatis, Registrar, FBCSA (See the previous July 25, 2024 Notice to the Consumer here.)

Oct 18 2024

Nov. 6, 2024 – UpdatesThe operator licence of Passfield Mortuary Services Inc., in St. Catharines, has been revoked. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario offers its condolences to the family members on their recent loss. On October 21, 2024, the Registrar licensed Wilson Burial and Cremation Inc. as a Transfer Service Operator – Class 1, at...

Sep 19 2024

The Registrar, Funeral, Burial and Cremation Services Act, 2002, has carried out his Notice of Proposal to revoke the licence of a funeral director, effective today. Andrea H. Bryce, previously of Gatineau, Quebec, has not contested the Registrar’s Notice of Proposal to revoke her Funeral Director – Class 1 licence. Registrar Jim Cassimatis, who is...

Sep 18 2024

The Licence Appeal Tribunal (LAT) has ordered the Registrar, Funeral, Burial and Cremation Services Act, 2002 (FBCSA), to carry out his Notice of Proposal (NOP) to not renew the: The LAT’s Decision and Order, made on Sept. 16, 2024, means that Luann M.H. Jones may not act in the capacity of a licensed funeral director...

Jul 25 2024

The Anglican Diocese of Niagara has been ordered to immediately stop selling burial services at several cemeteries it operates. Pursuant to subsection 109(7) Ontario Regulation 30/11, the Registrar, of the Funeral Burial and Cremation Services Act, 2002 (the Act), has ordered that the Anglican Diocese of Niagara immediately cease: This order relates to new burials...

Jul 19 2024

Eirene Cremations Inc. (Eirene) voluntarily terminated its Transfer Service Licence Class 1 on July 16, 2024. Consumers who have prepaid cremation or other death care services with Eirene Cremations Inc. are encouraged to contact Bereavement Authority of Ontario Inspector Kate Dafoe at Kate.Dafoe@thebao.ca or 647-952-4170. About the BAO The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is...

May 09 2024

A judge has sentenced a former Simcoe funeral director and funeral establishment owner to 12 months house arrest and ordered him to pay $386,064.97 restitution to the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) concerning fraud over $5,000 in relation to prepaid services. Today, Paul Taylor, of Norfolk County, received an 18-month conditional sentence after he pled...

Feb 14 2024

Consumer alert: This is a persistent issue. – January 2025 By Jim Cassimatis Interim CEO/Registrar, BAO The company names may be different, but it’s the same old game. They copy, paste, rewrite a little, and pretend it’s a death notice or obituary approved by the family of the deceased. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO)...

Feb 06 2024

Consumer FYI By Jim Cassimatis Interim CEO/Registrar Bereavement Authority of Ontario Cemeteries are well maintained in perpetuity thanks to companies, municipalities, religious organizations, and volunteers following the law and serving their communities. Generational maintenance of a cemetery is reinforced by the legally required contributions to a Care and Maintenance Fund or Account by all owners...

View all notices to the Consumer

For Professionals

Funeral Transfer Service Professionals Licensing

View Professional Licensing

Cemetery & Crematorium Professionals Forms

Articles for Professionals

View all notices to the Profession View all Registrar's Directives

Jun 27 2025

LifeLine newsletter is emailed to professionals licensed by the BAO in the bereavement sector on an ad hoc basis, averaging about a dozen a year. It is posted here for licensees’ reference and public interest. Note that the navigation in the index on top of each issue is designed for functionality in an email. It...

Apr 07 2025

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) has eliminated a business licensing fee charged in relation to stillborn births. In tandem with the provincial government’s announcement in the fall removing the associated cost and simplifying the process of obtaining a certified copy of stillbirth registration, the BAO is eliminating licensing fees associated with death care services...

Mar 14 2025

Dear Licensee, We’ve received notice that the Ontario Public Guardian and Trustee (OPGT) has recently mailed out your care and maintenance trust statement. We’ve updated our informative presentation slides to align with the new format of the statement. The slides will help guide you in filling out your Report on Care and Maintenance (Form 2). If you...

Mar 03 2025

We are looking for talented people to join the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO), the province’s sole regulator of professionals and businesses in the death care sector. The BAO is here for people at a vulnerable time in their lives as they make death care arrangements and grieve the loss of loved ones. We need...

Jan 24 2025

It’s important that grieving families know about the persistent issue of copied or ‘pirated’ death notices and obituaries. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is asking you, as licensed professionals, to share this information with people making funeral or other bereavement care arrangements with you. There are companies continuing to make money by reposting obituaries...

Jan 17 2025

The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) has updated the format of its Form 2 – Report on Care and Maintenance Fund/Account, and the instructions now aligned with the online portal version on OBIS. Changes to the form include: For more detail, please take a look at the Form 2 instructions as they have been updated to reflect these changes....

Dec 19 2024

Yearend Message By Leith Coghlin Chair BAO Board of Directors The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) Board of Directors has focused on putting the right strategic pieces in place for 2025 and beyond for grieving families, who are the consumers of the death care sector we regulate. Looking ahead, I know that board and...

Dec 19 2024

Year In Review By Jim Cassimatis CEO/Registrar Bereavement Authority of Ontario The year 2024 streamed by at pace with a string of accomplishments in place for consumers, and the continued commitment of professionals licensed by the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO). Throughout the year, our BAO Board of Directors, management and staff have been putting...

Dec 06 2024

Notice to the Profession Starting today, the Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) has made its new two-page overview of the Consumer Information Guide (CIG) the standard that we print and ship to licensed operators for consumers. Licensees will continue handing out to consumers the current 24-page BAO guides that you have on hand, until they...

Dec 04 2024

Please read this email carefully and keep it for reference. The BAO reminds Funeral Establishment (FE) and Transfer Service (TS) Operators that your annual licence renewal is due by December 31, 2024. New! For the first time ever, FE and TS Operator licence renewals are now being done online and at the licensed operator level, instead of...

Dec 03 2024

Please read this email carefully and keep it for reference. The BAO Licensee portal is now open to renew your personal licence, which must be renewed by the licence expiry date of December 31st. If you hold more than one personal licence: You will have separate profiles for each personal licence. (Sales Representative licences still expire on...

Oct 16 2024

Process for Cremations of Unclaimed Deceased Persons / Warrant to Bury the Body of a Deceased Person The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is sharing this joint memo from the Chief Coroner for Ontario and the CEO/Registrar of the BAO. The memo is to: Links

Oct 15 2024

New commemorative document, elimination of fees and simplified application providing support during a difficult time — Government of Ontario news release ……………………. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) supports this government initiative and is sharing the news release from the Government of Ontario. “The provincial government’s recognition of the need to provide support to grieving...

Oct 02 2024

By Jim Cassimatis, CEO/Registrar, BAO All bereavement facilities should remain peaceful places for families of all faiths, races, and cultures to grieve loved ones. The Bereavement Authority of Ontario (BAO) is here to support you, our licensed professionals, on issues of consumer and staff safety and security at your facilities. With the approach of the...

Sep 20 2024

IMPORTANT REMINDER:Please set up your licensee accounts on BAO Licensee Portal To: personal licensees, funeral establishment (FE) and transfer service operators (TS) This is a reminder to personal licensees and licensed operator main contacts to create your online portal account on the BAO’s Licensee Portal, ASAP. You will need access to this account to submit...

View all notices to the Profession View all Registrar's Directives