A state occasion or act of state is an official state ceremony usually marking an important event or honouring a person. Characteristics of a state occasion are a grand ceremony, a representative framework and the presence of high state officials, such as heads of state and government.
When honouring a deceased person it typically takes the form of a state funeral, although it can also be a separate ceremony which takes place before or after the actual funeral. Acts of state honouring deceased persons, but which are not actual funerals themselves, are found in a number of European countries and at the European Union level.