Death certificates could be issued for the relatives of people who were abducted and killed by the IRA during the troubles and whose bodies have not yet been located.
The Northern Ireland Secretary, Peter Hain, claimed the issuing of the certificates could help ease the pain of relatives of the so-called disappeared.
He confirmed the British government intended to introduce legislation allowing the certificates to be issued in cases where it had not been possible to locate the remains of a victim.
He said the families had expressed the view to Northern Ireland Office ministers that having a death certificate would bring great comfort to them.
A total of four bodies of people abducted by the IRA and secretly buried have been recovered so far in the Republic.
However, the bodies of five other people who the IRA has admitted to abducting and killing have not been found.
The Commission for the Recovery of Victims' Remains has also been looking at a number of other cases.
The new legislation being introduced in Northern Ireland will be modelled on the Presumption of Death (Scotland) Act 1977, which allows a spouse or other family member to apply to a court for a declaration that the missing person may be presumed to be dead if he or she has been missing for more than seven years and has not been heard of.
A court order will result in the missing person's presumed death to be registered and a death certificate issued to relatives.
Mr Hain revealed that the DUP deputy leader Peter Robinson had agreed that work on the proposals would proceed under his direction and that the legislation would be taken forward by the incoming Assembly.
Mr Robinson will become the new Finance and Personnel Minister when devolution returns on Tuesday.
Paisley hails 'welcome step forward'
The DUP leader and First Minister Designate, Ian Paisley, said the proposal was a welcome step forward in helping to resolve some of the practical matters impacting on the relatives of these victims.
He said he had taken a deep personal interest in the plight of the 'disappeared'.
This cannot, however, be considered an end point for the British government, he said.
Mr Paisley said he had raised this issue at talks with both the British and Irish governments, and with Sinn Féin.
He said he would continue to press for the needs of the families of the 'disappeared' to be met.
He said he had not yet been convinced that the governments had done every last thing they could to bring the maximum pressure to bear on those who may have knowledge of the whereabouts of these victims.
As the new administration is established at Stormont, the needs of innocent victims of terrorism must remain a key priority for all of us, he added.
