What the service is
What the Exclusive Right of Burial (ERoB) is
Purchasing the Exclusive Right of Burial (ERoB) gives you the right to bury human remains within a lair. Also known as the Lair Right Holder, it is your responsibility to keep the contact details we hold for the lair holder up to date.
What a lair is
A lair is a Scottish term for a burial plot in a cemetery. A lair can have more than one burial cremated remains. These are known as interments.
Being the lair holder and having the Right of Burial does not mean that you own this land. The cemetery grounds are owned by the Council.
The lair holder will also need to approve a burial within their lair.
They'll also need to use a stonemason who is on our Registration Scheme for Memorial Masons to erect any headstones or memorials. Find out about our headstones safety inspections.
A lair holder can pass on ownership of the lair to an heir or a person they choose as the owner.
How much it costs
It costs £1102 for a lair, if you are a Renfrewshire resident and have lived in Renfrewshire for 50 years or more.
It costs £3305.90 for a lair, if you are a resident from outside Renfrewshire and have lived here for less than 50 years.
There is no charge if the lair is for a child under 18 years old. There are also no charges for their interment (their burial) or for headstone permits and foundations.
More than one individual can be registered as a lair holder, except in the case of a trustee. In the case where there are multiple individuals on the register, consent must be agreed by all parties to exercise the ERoB in respect of the lair to which it relates. This also applies to rights of ownership of a memorial at the lair and responsibilities relating to this.
You cannot pre-purchase a lair or pick its location. To protect capacity across our cemeteries, we do not offer pre-purchase of lairs. We will select the location of a lair. Any specific requests can be considered but not guaranteed.
Before you apply for a lair
Lairs bought after 1 March 2026 come with a 25 year right of burial.
What you can use it for
We cannot guarantee the number of interments possible in any lair. Often, a lair can have a maximum of 3 coffin interments and 6 cremated remains. However, this is subject to ground conditions, coffin dimensions and any other associated factors.
You need to apply for each interment you want to make on your lair.
You can place one floral container (this cannot be made of glass or ceramic), or a plaque or tablet, at the head of the lair or immediately in front of the memorial headstone.
What you cannot use it for
We need access for grounds maintenance, for future interments, and to install and maintain headstones. To allow access to the lair, you:
- cannot plant any tree, shrub or plant
- cannot install fencing, kerbing, gravel, or lighting
- cannot lay kerbs, artificial wreaths, pall stones, globes.
Where contact details are available we'll contact you asking you to remove any of these items.
Excessive memorabilia can also affect grounds maintenance, lead to complaints from other lair holders, and are at risk of being stolen or damaged.
How to apply for this service
In most cases your undertaker will apply for this on your behalf.
Change of details or transfer of title deeds
You must tell us of any changes to the lair holder's name, address and contact details.
When the lair holder dies, the lair should be transferred to maintain a point of contact for any issues which may arise regarding the lair or memorial.
It costs £32.20 for a registration of transfer.
If you need help to apply
Contact Parks and Cemeteries:
Renewing a right to burial
From 1 March 2026 a new right of burial will last for 25 years. Then:
- after 25 years, it may be renewed for 10 years at a time. This is likely to attract an associated fee which will be determined at the time
- there is no limit to the number of renewals, subject to our approval
- a renewal can only be completed by the current lair holder, or by a person to whom the right has been formally transferred through Renfrewshire Council’s Transfer of Burial process.
When a renewal will be refused
Renewal would only be refused in limited circumstances.
For example, if the lair holder of the right to burial has died and the right has not been transferred following the required process, the right automatically returns to us.
If the right of burial is not renewed:
- the right of burial will expire
- no further burials may take place in that lair unless Rights have been extended
- no new memorial may be installed, and no additional works may be carried out on an existing memorial without our prior consent and approval
- if the lair has not been used, we may sell it again.
Reminder before the right ends
We'll contact the lair holder at least 3 months before the right is due to expire. It's important that contact details are kept up to date. We'll tell you:
- when the right of burial expires
- how to renew it
- what happens if you choose not to renew.