QR code plaque on a grave or gravestone: what cemetery regulations say in Ticino

Yes, in the regulations we read. In Lugano, fitting kerbs, gravestones, monuments “or anything else with inscriptions” needs prior approval from the cemetery service (art. 21). In Locarno, setting monuments, gravestones, crosses and surrounds is subject to the approval of the Municipio, the municipal executive (art. 18). In Tenero and Contra, designs for gravestones and monuments must be approved beforehand by the Municipio (art. 15 and 20).

A plaque with a QR code fixed to a gravestone or grave is an addition to the monument: the municipality decides whether and how it may be fitted.

In Lugano the application is submitted to the cemetery service by specialised firms, on behalf of the people concerned, before the work. For gravestones and monuments, two copies of the design with dimensions and materials must be attached. The service checks conformity and decides. Issuing the approval costs an administrative fee, which in the fee schedule runs from 30 to 200 francs.

In Locarno the design is generally submitted in two copies at a scale of 1:50. In Tenero and Contra, in two copies at 1:10.

Here the regulations are strictest. In Lugano, the closing slab of urn niches may show only surname, first name, and years of birth and death, and may carry a frame with a photograph, a flower holder and a religious symbol. The same rules apply to coffin niches (art. 37 and 38).

In Tenero and Contra, besides name and dates of birth and death, only the photograph of the deceased is allowed, and “it is forbidden to attach objects of any kind to the closing slabs” (art. 21). In Locarno, the slabs for niches and cells are supplied by the municipality, with inscriptions engraved to its instructions (art. 21).

The regulations we read make no reference to QR codes. Where the list of what may be fitted is closed, as on niches and urn cells, a code is not provided for. Where the gravestone is a design approved by the municipality, a plaque may be part of the design if the municipality approves it.

The answer rests with the municipality and must be asked before ordering anything. There is no single rule for all of Ticino: each municipality has its own regulation.

• Write to the cemetery service of the municipality where the grave is, and say what kind of burial it is: grave, niche, urn cell.
• Ask whether a plaque with a QR code is allowed, and in what material and size.
• Ask a stonemason or the funeral home to submit the application, if the regulation entrusts it to specialised firms.
• Have the plaque included in the design, with dimensions and materials.
• Once it is fitted, keep it in good condition: maintaining gravestones and monuments is the concession holders’ responsibility (Lugano, art. 28).

The memorial page does not depend on the plaque. It is shared with a link, including with relatives far away, and it stays online with no expiry on Aevi’s free plan. The plaque is one more way to reach it from the grave.

Aevi’s plaques with a QR code are not yet on sale: the catalogue is being prepared.