Endowment after death
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Q: My relative is a very elderly widow who has sons and daughters, all of whom are married and have children. She owns several houses that she received from her share of her mother’s inheritance. Among these properties is a building in Makkah al-Mukarramah that yields a good rental income, which she uses to support herself and any of her children who are in need. She fears that these properties will be liquidated after her death and the heirs will divide their value. She has informed me that she wishes to endow only this building for acts of charity and righteousness, with its rental income to be spent on any of her sons or daughters who are in need. Her condition is that this endowment should not take effect until after her death. On her behalf, I seek your ruling, O your Eminence, and the members of the Senior Committee for Ifta, as to whether the method she desires to implement this endowment is in accordance with the rulings of Islamic law? If so, I request that a fatwa be issued to her. However, if this procedure involves a violation or non-compliance with the rulings of the Shari'ah, I also request clarification of the correct method that would prevent this building from being liquidated so that she and her mother can benefit from it after her death. May Allah guide you to the paths of good and righteousness, and may peace and the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
herself and her children who are in need, and she fears that these properties will be liquidated after her death and the heirs will divide their value. She has informed me that she wishes to endow only this building for acts of charity and righteousness, and that its rental income be spent on her children and daughters who are in need. Her condition is that this endowment not take effect until after her death. On her behalf, I seek a ruling from your Eminence and the members of the Senior Committee for Ifta: does the method she desires to implement this endowment conform to the rulings of Islamic law? If so, I ask that a fatwa be issued to her. However, if this procedure involves a violation or non-compliance with the rulings of the Shari'ah, I also ask that the correct method be clarified so that this building is preserved from liquidation, allowing her and her mother to benefit from it after her death. May Allah guide you to the paths of good and righteousness, and may peace and the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
A: An endowment made after death is treated like a bequest; it is deducted from one-third of the estate. Anything exceeding one-third is not executed unless the heirs consent, because it is an endowment contingent upon death. If she wishes to rectify this, she should make the endowment of the building an immediate endowment during her lifetime.
herself and her children who are in need, and she fears that these properties will be liquidated after her death and the heirs will divide their value. She has informed me that she wishes to endow only this building for acts of charity and righteousness, and that its rental income be spent on her children and daughters who are in need. Her condition is that this endowment not take effect until after her death. On her behalf, I seek a ruling from your Eminence and the members of the Senior Committee for Ifta: does the method she desires to implement this endowment conform to the rulings of Islamic law? If so, I ask that a fatwa be issued to her. However, if this procedure involves a violation or non-compliance with the rulings of the Shari'ah, I also ask that the correct method be clarified so that this building is preserved from liquidation, allowing her and her mother to benefit from it after her death. May Allah guide you to the paths of good and righteousness, and may peace and the mercy and blessings of Allah be upon you.
A: An endowment made after death is treated like a bequest; it is deducted from one-third of the estate. Anything exceeding one-third is not executed unless the heirs consent, because it is an endowment contingent upon death. If she wishes to rectify this, she should make the endowment of the building an immediate endowment during her lifetime.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.