Paris has never done cemeteries like anywhere else. Famous names. Iconic tombs. And now, a chance for locals to get their own piece of that legacy if they win the city’s new burial lottery.
Yes, a lottery! The City of Paris is offering free access to historic graves that have been abandoned and left to decay. In return, the winners agree to restore the monuments and keep them alive. It is part preservation, part practicality, and totally Parisian.
Why Paris Is Doing This
Cemeteries inside Paris have been full for over a century. There is no more open land to expand them. Meanwhile, families that once tended graves have vanished. Time takes its toll. Cracked stones. Lost names. Entire plots now forgotten.
Linda / Unsplash / These cemeteries are protected heritage sites. That means bulldozing is not an option.
So, the city came up with a creative solution: let the living take over the forgotten dead, as long as they do the work to restore those graves.
How the Lottery Works
The plan focuses on 30 neglected plots from the 1800s across three world-renowned cemeteries: Père Lachaise, Montparnasse, and Montmartre. All of them are crowded with cultural legends. The city is offering 10 crumbling graves in each. If you are a Paris resident, you can throw your name into the lottery.
Applications opened in early November 2025. The deadline is December 31. The draw happens in January 2026. Only locals can apply. And it is not just a win-and-go deal. There is serious follow-through required.
Each winner pays €4,000 upfront to buy one of the old graves. Then comes the restoration. Within six months, the structure must be rebuilt to match the original. Think of it like architectural time travel—a tribute to 19th-century design. And the city wants proof that you know what you are doing. So, applicants need quotes from real stonemasons before they qualify.
That €4,000 doesn’t buy you burial rights. After the monument is restored, you also need to buy the actual plot nearby. If you skip that step or fail to restore the monument, you lose your investment. The city takes the grave back.
The Process of the Lottery
James / Unsplash / Entering the lottery costs €125. That is just to get your name in the draw. If you win, it is €4,000 for the grave itself.
Then there is the restoration cost, which depends on the monument’s state and the stonework needed. That could run into the thousands.
On top of that, you will need to lease a burial plot. Prices depend on the term. Ten years cost €976. Thirty years is €3,354. Fifty years run €5,260. Want it forever? That will be €17,668. If your lease expires and you don’t renew it, the city has the right to resell and reuse the plot. Nothing here is eternal unless you pay for it.
Père-Lachaise is the most visited cemetery in the world. It holds legends like Édith Piaf, Frédéric Chopin, and Marcel Proust. Montparnasse is where Jean-Paul Sartre and Simone de Beauvoir rest. Montmartre includes Degas and Zola. These names attract thousands of visitors a year. Now, you could join them.
But it is not about celebrity neighbors. The city says this is about preservation and ecology. Instead of letting old monuments rot, they are asking people to give them new life. In exchange, those people get a spot in some of the most famous cemeteries on Earth.
