Archive · 5 Nov 2025
France to Hold Lottery for Burial Plots Near Famous Figures
Imagine if your favorite movie star or a famous artist was buried in a special place.
Now, imagine you could be buried right next to them!
Paris, a city with lots of famous people buried in its cemeteries, is running out of space.
So, they've decided to have a special drawing, like a lottery, for a few spots.
If you win, you get a chance to buy a spot for around €4000.
But there's a catch: you also have to fix up an old headstone to get the spot.
After you get the burial spot, you still need to pay to bury someone there, which can cost a lot of money.
Only people who live in Paris can enter this special drawing.
Paris city council is holding a lottery for burial plots in overcrowded cemeteries.
Ten gravestones in cemeteries like Pere-Lachaise are being offered for €4,000 each.
Purchasers must restore the gravestones to gain a burial spot next to them.
The winner will be chosen by January 2026, and burial costs range from €976 for 10 years to €17,668 for perpetuity.
Applications are restricted to residents of Paris.
- Who
- Paris city council
- What
- Holding a lottery for burial plots in overcrowded cemeteries
- When
- Winner to be chosen by January 2026
- Where
- Overcrowded cemeteries in Paris, including Pere-Lachaise, Montparnasse, and Montmartre
- Why
- To manage finite burial land and high demand
- Lottery Application Deadline
- January 2026
- Number of Plots Available
- 10 per cemetery
- Cost of Gravestone Restoration
- €4,000
- Burial Cost (10 years)
- From €976
- Burial Cost (Perpetuity)
- €17,668
- Eligibility
- Paris residents only