'I've never seen it this bad': Wait time for Quebec death certificates has gotten worse

Grieving the loss of a loved one is hard enough but it's even more difficult when there are problems with paperwork.

That's the reality more Quebec families are facing as the wait time for death certificates worsens.

The official average is more than 50 days.

Diane Brown describes her late partner, Vince Cardette, as a music lover, a stylish guy, who was a true gentleman.

"You know, he'd pull your chair out, hold the door for you. You know, he treated you like a real lady. He was really one of a kind," she told CTV News.

She's been grieving his loss since Feb. 8 when he died unexpectedly in their home.

"I found him upstairs. I performed CPR, but it was too late," she said.

Diane Brown and her husband. (Submitted)

Brown started the process early on to register his death with the province. But as of Tuesday, she's still waiting for the certificate.

"They did receive it on the 28th of February," she said.

She's been following up with the government since June but says she keeps getting the runaround.

"After 20 minutes, the phone hung up. I called again, [they] put me on hold again. I waited another 20 minutes, hung up."

Diane Brown lost her husband on Feb. 8, 2024 and is still waiting for his death certificate from the province. (CTV News)

Brown isn't alone. At the Kane Fetterly funeral home in Montreal, calls come in all day long from people still waiting for their loved one's death certificate.

"I've never seen it this bad," said Jane Blanchard, the funeral home's director of aftercare.

"We've never waited five and almost six months for death certificates from the province."

Blanchard has been dealing with the application process for nearly 20 years. She says the wait time used to average three weeks but it's been steadily growing since 2019.

The latest government data from the employment ministry shows it takes an average of 52 days to register a death in Quebec, as long as the application isn't missing any information.

Without the official death certificate families can't settle estates, sell property, or complete their taxes.

"There's a whole barrage of issues, you know, for people that are already grieving and going through a very difficult time. It's heartbreaking for me to have to say I don't have the paperwork," Blanchard said.

In a statement, the employment ministry says several reasons have contributed to longer delays, including the aging population and an increase in deaths since the pandemic. It also added: There is the demographic change linked in particular to regarding immigration, which means that some deaths are more difficult to register, especially when the deceased were not born in Quebec.

But Brown is growing frustrated and wants to move forward.

"Everyone's sort of on hold and I'm like, 'I'm grieving.' The family's grieving still," she said.

Meanwhile, the ministry says it has hired and trained new employees and is confident wait times will be reduced in the coming months.