• In respect of persons who have not expressed their will during their life, medical treatment authorities may, after death, ask the immediate relatives to provide information regarding the willingness of the deceased to use the body, tissues and organs of the deceased.
• If there is no information in the eHealth system regarding the authorisation or prohibition of the use of the deceased person's organs, tissues, body after death, the spouse, parents, adult children, siblings or nurses shall have the right to inform the medical treatment institution in writing of the will expressed during the life of the deceased.
• If the eHealth system does not contain any information on the authorisation or prohibition of the use of the deceased person's organs, tissues, body after death, and it has not been possible to clarify the will expressed during his life from the closest nationals, it is considered that the person agrees to allow the use of his organs, tissues, body after death.

Organs may be removed from a living donor (e.g. a kidney) only with his written consent.

A living organ donor who has already donated an organ during his life has the right to receive State-guaranteed medical treatment for free by the end of his life.

As from 1 February 2021, each adult person may make his or her wish by making an appropriate note in the national eHealth system.

To do this:

1. to open the website www.eveseliba.gov.lv ;

2. be connected to one of the means of secure access, such as internet banking access data, e-signature or other;

3. select the heading “Personal data” — “Organ and body use permits”;

4. a statement must be made under the heading “Use of organs and tissues for transplantation” on the authorisation or prohibition of all or specified organs and tissues.

When connecting to the national eHealth system, the citizen shall also have the opportunity to make a note on the authorisation or prohibition:

• perform a pathological examination (section);
• use the body for teaching and scientific purposes, studies, the manufacture of medicated preparations and bioprophytes.

This information has limited access! Information on the will expressed in the eHealth system can be accessed and viewed by a very limited number of people from specific authorities:

• Transplantology centre;
• Forensic Examiner Centre;
• a higher education institution registered in the higher education register, which has received a permit issued by the State Agency of Medicines for the utilisation of tissues or organs for the implementation of accredited medical study programmes or vocational development programmes of medical practitioners;
• medical treatment institutions which perform a pathological examination (section).

The emergency medical service, medical treatment establishments, family doctors' practices, etc. shall not have access to this information.

Every view of the data in the eHealth system is recorded and the citizen can make sure that someone has not looked at the information provided when connecting to the eHealth system. This can be done in the section “Permissions for Organ and Body Use”.

If a citizen does not have an access tool to connect to the eHealth system (internet banking access data, e-signature or other), should inform family of their will. On the other hand, if a citizen does not have a computer or an Internet but has one of the access tools, it is possible to turn to one of the state and municipalities single customer service centres to connect to E-Health and express their will.

Law On the protection of the body of a dead person and the use of human tissues and organs in medicine

Cabinet Regulation No. 1176 of 22 October 2013 Procedures for Use of Human Tissue and Cells

Cabinet Regulation No. 70 of 29 January 2013 Regulations Regarding the Use of Human Organs in Medicine, as well as the Utilisation of Human Organs and the Body of a Dead Man for Medical Studies

Cabinet Regulation No. 412 of 22 June 2021 Procedures for the Inclusion and Update of Messages in the Register of Natural Persons

The Ministry of Health (HM)

The National Health Service (NHS)

Funeral allowance and formalities

State-paid medicine