Guiding families through what comes next
Clarvia is a Luxembourg non-profit building a free, multilingual bereavement service for families after the loss of a loved one. We help families understand what needs to be done, what may be urgent, which documents matter, and where to turn for qualified help - regardless of language, nationality, income, family situation, or personal network.
After a loss, practical help is not equally accessible
people closely affected each year in Luxembourg
Based on 4,471 deaths in Luxembourg in 2024 and research estimating around 9 close people closely affected per death.
of residents are foreign nationals
Nearly half of Luxembourg's residents have another nationality, making grief support naturally multilingual and cross-cultural.
Source: CEFIS/STATEC
to declare a death
Some first formalities must be handled very quickly, often while families are still in shock.
Source: Guichet.lu
When someone passes away, families are suddenly expected to handle administration, documents, institutions, urgent steps, funeral matters, succession-related questions, and personal memories - often while in shock.
For many people, this is harder because of language barriers, cross-border family situations, limited financial means, unfamiliarity with Luxembourg's systems, or simply not knowing who to ask.
The information may exist, but it is often scattered, technical, and difficult to navigate at the very moment families have the least capacity to search.
Clarvia exists to make this guidance easier to access for everyone.
A free bereavement service for Luxembourg
Clarvia's first project is a free digital service that helps families understand the practical steps after a loss in Luxembourg.
The service will guide families through relevant topics such as:
- ●first administrative steps after a loss
- ●documents to collect and keep
- ●institutions and organisations to notify
- ●funeral-related administration
- ●employer, pension, insurance, banking, and housing-related steps
- ●succession-related orientation
- ●cross-border considerations where relevant
- ●reminders for time-sensitive tasks
- ●links to official sources and qualified professionals
Clarvia will not replace legal, notarial, tax, medical, psychological, banking, financial, or succession advice. It will help families understand where to start, what to prepare, and when to seek professional support.
Personalised
Steps relevant to the family's situation
Time-sensitive
Helps to identify urgent steps
Trilingual
English, French, and German
Starting in Luxembourg, built for real family situations
Clarvia begins with Luxembourg because this is where the association is founded, and where the first service will be built and validated.
At the same time, many families in Luxembourg have lives, relatives, assets, responsibilities, and memories across borders. A practical service for Luxembourg therefore needs to recognise international realities from the beginning.
Clarvia's first focus is Luxembourg. The structure is being designed carefully so that cross-border situations can be handled responsibly, and so that guidance for other European countries can be added in the future.
More than paperwork
A heritage folder to preserve what matters
Bereavement is not only administrative. Families also need to preserve the memory, wishes, and important information of the person they have lost.
Clarvia is developing a dedicated heritage folder to help families organise:
- ●key documents and contacts
- ●important life details
- ●funeral or memorial wishes, where known
- ●memories, stories, photos, and messages
- ●practical information relatives may need
- ●information that should not be lost during a difficult time
The goal is both practical and human: to reduce confusion while giving families a dignified place to remember the person behind the paperwork.
Free, multilingual, and easy to understand
Clarvia is being designed for families in Luxembourg in all their diversity.
- ●Luxembourg residents and international families
- ●families who speak different languages
- ●people with limited financial means
- ●people without a strong support network
- ●cross-border families managing responsibilities from abroad
- ●people unfamiliar with Luxembourg's administrative system
Our aim is to give every family a clearer path through the first administrative steps after a loss - not only those who already know where to look or whom to call.
A public-interest project
Clarvia is being built to make practical post-bereavement guidance easier to access in Luxembourg.
The project is free, multilingual, and designed for people who may not know the local system, speak the main administrative languages, have financial means, or have a strong personal network.
Clarvia is not a substitute for public authorities or qualified professionals. It is a bridge: helping families understand official information, prepare better questions, and find the right support when they need it.
What families and professionals have told us
Clarvia is being shaped by people who have experienced bereavement administration first-hand, and by organisations that see families face these challenges in practice.
“When my mother passed away unexpectedly, it felt like falling into a black box. My first instinct was to shut out the world and cry, but almost immediately I was told there were things that had to be done within 24 hours. That felt inhumane. Clear guidance for something that eventually touches every family would be deeply welcome.”
- Tom, Luxembourg
“Our daughter died in a fatal accident while living in Luxembourg. She was not a Luxembourg national, and there was no will. We suddenly had to deal with Luxembourg's administrative system without speaking any of its official languages. No parent should ever have to go through the loss of a child, but there has to be a better way than adding immediate administrative burden on top of grief.”
- Bereaved parents, United Kingdom
“When someone dies while your family is split between countries, grief becomes mixed with documents, translations, distance, and uncertainty. You do not always know which country's rules matter, who to contact, or what papers are needed. In that moment, a free and multilingual guide would not remove the grief, but it would remove some of the fear and confusion.”
- Ukrainian temporary protection beneficiary, Luxembourg
Why we founded Clarvia
“Throughout my decades leading social services and senior care, I've seen firsthand how vulnerable families are during a crisis. When you add the complexities of cross-border administration and language barriers, that burden becomes paralyzing.
I founded Clarvia because access to clear, structured support during life's hardest moments shouldn't be a privilege. It must be a given.”
Günther Schriver
Co-Founder & Director
“When my mother passed away, my sisters and I were overwhelmed. Even in a straightforward case in our home country, the administrative guides were a maze. In Europe - where families are spread across the globe, speak different languages, and interact with unfamiliar institutions - this burden is amplified beyond reason.
I founded Clarvia to ensure no family has to navigate the bureaucracy of grief alone.”
Tommi Lindfors
Co-Founder & Director
Newly founded, carefully prepared
Clarvia ASBL was founded in Luxembourg in May 2026.
The association is new, but the project has been carefully prepared. During this period, the founders have worked on:
mapping the bereavement journey after a loss
identifying common points of confusion for families
defining the structure of a personalised checklist
designing the heritage folder concept
exploring the technical approach
preparing the governance and safeguarding approach
assessing what is needed to build and validate the service responsibly
The next phase is a focused build and validation project.
Six months to build, validate, and prepare the service
Clarvia's next phase is expected to take approximately six months. During this phase, we aim to:
complete the Luxembourg checklist structure
validate the content with appropriate professionals and official sources
build the first digital version of the checklist
design the heritage folder in a privacy-conscious way
prepare multilingual content
test the service with users and community partners
improve accessibility and plain-language guidance
prepare for a controlled public launch in Luxembourg
By the end of this phase, Clarvia aims to have a first validated Luxembourg checklist, multilingual plain-language content, a working digital prototype, a privacy-conscious heritage folder concept, and feedback from families and relevant professionals.
This work requires dedicated capacity, either through an employee, a specialised third party, or a combination of both.
Supported by
TSC Real Estate
One of Germany's leading healthcare real estate managers, experienced in the residential care sector, with branches in Luxembourg, Italy, and Spain.
“We believe that Clarvia's mission - making essential post-bereavement information accessible, structured and free - is clearly in the public interest.”
We are grateful for TSC Real Estate's early support for Clarvia's mission to make practical bereavement guidance free and accessible to families.
Founded by people with care-sector and technology experience
Günther Schriver
Co-Founder & Director
Former Director of the Berlin Red Cross, where he led Social Services overseeing 550+ employees across refugee aid, senior care, and crisis management. Former CEO of Anderson Holding AG, one of Germany's largest senior care groups, where he led an organisation of 3,500 employees. Brings over 25 years of experience in healthcare operations, social services, and cross-border care delivery.
Tommi Lindfors
Co-Founder & Director
Led a FinTech50 company, held board positions across 6 countries, and built international teams driving growth from startup to scale. Currently Founder & CEO of Bifin Sàrl, applying AI and automation to financial services. Now based in Luxembourg, channelling decades of operational, technology, and AI experience into Clarvia.
Clarvia's directors serve voluntarily and without remuneration.
Built with care
Equal access
Bereavement guidance should be available regardless of background, status, language, income, or personal network.
Clarity
Families need practical steps, not another maze of information.
Dignity
The person who has passed away should not disappear behind paperwork.
Safety
Clarvia must be clear about its limits and guide families toward qualified professionals when needed.
Privacy
Bereavement information is sensitive. The service must collect as little as possible and protect what families choose to share.
Multilingual
Designed from the start in English, French, and German to reflect Luxembourg's multilingual reality.
Share your experience
If you have managed practical steps after losing a loved one in Luxembourg, your experience can help us design a better service.
You do not need to share private details. We are especially interested in practical obstacles: What was hardest to understand? Which documents were difficult to find? Which institutions or steps were unclear? What would have helped most? Which language would have made the process easier?
Please do not send identification numbers, medical records, bank details, confidential legal information, or private documents through this form.
Work with us
Clarvia is currently in its build and validation phase. We welcome contact from:
- ●families willing to share practical experience
- ●professionals working with bereaved families
- ●social-sector organisations
- ●communes and public-interest actors
- ●notaries, lawyers, tax professionals, and administrative experts
- ●translators and accessibility specialists
- ●potential partners and volunteers