Overview

• The Rheinland-Pfalz cabinet has approved a draft law to modernize burial practices, replacing regulations in place since 1983.
• The reform permits burials in the Rhine, Mosel, Lahn, and Saar rivers, aiming to reduce cross-border 'burial tourism' to the Netherlands.
• Shroud burials, previously restricted to religious exceptions, will now be available to everyone, eliminating the mandatory coffin requirement.
• Families will be allowed to store urns at home or scatter ashes outside cemeteries, with synthetic diamond creation from ashes also legalized.
• The law introduces mandatory autopsies for children under six years old when the cause of death is unclear, aiming to improve investigations into potential crimes like shaken baby syndrome.