Every year in Greater Manchester about 15% of burials are for “non-local” residents.
As a result, the councils are collecting more than £500,000 every year in non-resident fees.
Wigan is the only borough in Greater Manchester where there is a flat charge for everyone.
Grant Longden, from Mulligan’s Funeral Services in Stockport, has been challenging the other councils to explain why the extra fees are justified.
He said some had told him it had been their policy since the 1860s.
“Some families are stuck between guilt and debt,” he said.
“Some people will go into debt in order to look after their loved ones and have them buried exactly where they wanted.
“It’s my responsibility as a funeral director dealing with vulnerable people that I have to safeguard them as well.
“I’m asking for fairness – I’m not asking for anything that I feel is outrageous. Other funeral directors feel the same way about it as well.”