The 10 places in the world where it is illegal to die

‘Death and taxes’ doesn't apply there

That is because some of them have taken some unusual, absurd steps, through which they’ve made it illegal to die.

Yes, that’s totally a thing in these parts of the world.

If you may wonder why, that’s because many are tied to serious issues, such as limited burial space, ancient religious customs, or environmental regulations.

Even if they’re often symbolic, these bans serve as a means for local leaders to garner attention or advocate for change.

The rules were, in other cases, grounded in strict cultural beliefs that shaped how and where people could live or die.

Each of these places has its own reason, and together they reveal how death can be deeply political.

Longyearbyen, Norway

The Arctic town has banned burials due to the frozen ground that prevents decomposition, and this has been in place since the 1950s.

After researchers extracted a live sample of the 1918 flu from a body buried here, it confirmed what locals had already feared: viruses can survive in permafrost.

Ever since that discovery, the dying are now transferred off the island by plane.

Sellia, Italy

Sellia's mayor passed a 2015 ordinance making it “illegal” to get sick or die.

What makes this more worrying is that nearly all of its residents are over 65.

The penalty is a €10 fine for skipping your annual checkup, and the message was to stay healthy, or at least pretend you're trying, because this town can't afford to shrink further.

Delos, Greece

Since the ancient Greece times, Delos was considered too sacred for the messy realities of life and death.

Around the 6th century BCE, authorities ordered graves removed and banned both childbirth and dying on the island.

Anyone nearing either was ferried to neighboring Rhenea, which became an ancient version of a designated zone.

Rhenea, Greece (Designated Site for Delos' Death Ban)

After Delos prohibited death and childbirth, Rhenea became the official place where both were allowed.

The two islands were linked religiously and politically, so graves were removed from Delos and reburied on Rhenea.

The people who were nearing death or childbirth were transferred there, reflecting classical Greek ideas about ritual purity and where life events were permitted to occur

Falciano Del Massico, Italy

The mayor of Falciano banned death in 2012, after a cemetery dispute with neighboring Mondragone made local burials impossible.

The decision was a legal fiction intended to highlight the shortage of burial space.

Eventually, negotiations led to a resolution, but the decree drew national attention for its blunt approach to a municipal impasse.

Itsukushima, Japan

This sacred island, which is famous for its “floating” torii gate, avoided both birth and death for centuries.

In Shinto belief, each was seen as spiritually impure, so even samurai were relocated before they died.

The ban ended in 1868; yet, the island still lacks cemeteries, hospitals, or places associated with birth or death.Biritiba Mirim, Brazil

As the small town’s cemetery ran out of space in 2005, environmental rules blocked expansion.

The mayor, in response, proposed a law banning residents from dying and the move forced state officials to reconsider restrictions.

Eventually, new land was approved. Until then, everyone was expected to stay alive, at least legally.

Cugnaux, France

Cugnaux's mayor banned death within city limits in 2007, after cemetery plans were blocked by regional authorities.

The decree was written less as legislation and more as a media tactic, and it worked.

News coverage spread fast, pushing higher-ups to take the space shortage seriously. Locals, understandably, did not treat the ban as binding.

Sarpourenx, France

The mayor of Sarpourenx issued a decree in 2008 that not only banned death but also threatened violators with punishment. The satire was intentional.

Just like in Cugnaux, the issue was a lack of cemetery space and blocked expansion plans.

The decree gained wide media attention, serving its purpose as a protest against inaction.

Lanjarón, Spain

A mock prohibition on dying was passed in Lanjarón in 1999 after its cemetery reached capacity and efforts to secure new land stalled.

This move was modeled after similar symbolic bans in France and Brazil.

And while it was never enforced, it helped accelerate official discussions to resolve the burial space shortage.