The Islamic will (wasiyyah): a simple guide

Most people put off writing a will because it makes them think about death. Yet the Prophet ﷺ treated it as an urgent, ordinary duty for any Muslim who owns something or owes something. In Islam the shares of inheritance are already fixed by Allah, so a will (wasiyyah) is not for dividing your estate. It is for three things: recording what you owe to people, settling what you owe to Allah, and giving up to one third to people or causes who do not inherit from you. This guide explains the rules, with the Hanafi position, a worked example and a simple outline you can use.

Why should a Muslim write a will?

The clearest instruction comes in a hadith narrated by 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar:

Ibn 'Umar said that from the time he heard this, not a single night passed without his will being with him. Scholars explain that the hadith is about a person with something to settle: debts, trusts held for others, or wealth from which they may wish to give. For such a person, writing it down is a firm sunnah, and if there are debts or trusts that no one else knows about, recording them becomes necessary, because otherwise the rights of others may be lost.

Death rarely gives notice. Accidents, sudden illness and heart attacks take people of every age. A written will protects your family from guessing and disputes, makes sure your creditors are paid, and allows good deeds to continue after you. The Prophet ﷺ said that when a person dies their deeds end except for three: an ongoing charity, knowledge that benefits, and a righteous child who prays for them (Sahih Muslim 1631). A will is often how that ongoing charity begins.

He also taught that the best charity is given while healthy and still wanting to keep wealth, not delayed until the soul reaches the throat and one says "this for so-and-so" (Sahih al-Bukhari 1419). So give in life where you can, and use the will for what remains.

What does the Qur'an say about the wasiyyah?

In Surah Al-Baqarah Allah says: "It is prescribed for you, when death approaches one of you and he leaves wealth, that he make a bequest to parents and near relatives in a fair way: a duty upon the righteous" (2:180). The next verse warns that whoever changes a bequest after hearing it carries the sin of it (2:181), and the verse after that allows a person who fears an unjust or sinful bequest to make peace between the parties (2:182).

Later, the inheritance verses of Surah An-Nisa (4:11-12) fixed exact shares for parents, children, spouses and siblings. Four times in those two verses Allah adds that the shares are given "after any bequest that was made, or debt". The Prophet ﷺ then said, "Allah has given everyone who has a right their right, so there is no bequest for an heir" (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2120). Scholars explain that the compulsory bequest to parents and relatives in 2:180 was replaced, for those who inherit, by these fixed shares. The bequest itself remains, now as a recommended act for relatives and others who do not inherit.

Surah Al-Ma'idah (5:106) also tells believers to have two just witnesses present when making a bequest as death approaches, which is why witnesses are part of a proper will.

How much can you leave in an Islamic will, and what is the one-third rule?

The limit comes from the Companion Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas. He fell seriously ill in Makkah and, having only one daughter as his heir, asked the Prophet ﷺ whether he could give all his wealth in charity. The Prophet said no. He asked about half, and again the answer was no. Then he asked about a third:

From this hadith the scholars took three rules that every Muslim writing a will should know.

• Up to one third only. You may bequeath at most one third of what remains after funeral costs and debts. Many scholars recommend less than a third, such as a quarter or a fifth, because the Prophet ﷺ called a third "a lot".
• No bequest to an heir. You cannot use the will to give extra to someone who already inherits, such as a son, a wife or a parent. Such a bequest only takes effect if all the other heirs agree to it after your death, and only adult, sane heirs can agree for their own share.
• More than a third needs consent. Anything above a third is valid only if the adult heirs agree after the death. If they do not, the extra is cancelled and goes back into the inheritance.

A worked example of the one-third rule

Imagine a man dies leaving a wife, one son and one daughter. After a simple funeral and paying all his debts, what remains is treated as 100 per cent of the estate. In his will he left one quarter (25 per cent) to build a well and support a madrasa. That is within one third, so it is paid in full.

The remaining 75 per cent is divided by the Qur'anic shares. The wife receives one eighth of it because there are children, which is 9.375 per cent of the whole. The rest, 65.625 per cent, goes to the son and daughter with the son receiving twice the daughter's share: 43.75 per cent to the son and 21.875 per cent to the daughter. Had he bequeathed half to charity, only one third would be paid unless the adult heirs agreed to the rest. You can try your own case with our Islamic inheritance calculator.

In what order is a Muslim's estate settled?

Islamic law sets a clear order. Each step is taken from what remains after the step before it.

• 1. Funeral costs. Washing, a simple shroud and burial, paid at a moderate level without extravagance.
• 2. Debts. Every debt to people comes before any charity or inheritance, including loans, unpaid bills and a wife's unpaid mehr, which is a real debt on the husband. Our mehr calculator explains how mehr is worked out.
• 3. The will. Bequests are carried out up to one third of what is left.
• 4. Inheritance. Everything remaining is divided among the heirs by the shares in Surah An-Nisa.

Debts come before the will even though the will is mentioned first in the verses. A narration from 'Ali in Jami' at-Tirmidhi says the Prophet ﷺ settled debts before bequests; its chain is discussed, but the scholars agree on this order.

What should you include in an Islamic will?

Debts and trusts

List every debt you owe and every debt owed to you, with names and any documents. Record any amanah, items or money others have left with you, so your family returns them. This part protects the rights of people, which are not wiped away unless the person owed forgives them.

Duties to Allah you have not fulfilled

Many people die with missed obligations: zakat not paid in past years, fasts of Ramadan not made up, prayers missed, an obligatory Hajj never performed, or a vow left unfulfilled. In the Hanafi school, if you instruct in your will that fidya be paid for missed prayers and fasts, or that overdue zakat be paid, your executor must pay it from the one third. Without such an instruction, the heirs are not obliged to pay it, though they may pay from their own shares as a kindness, hoping Allah accepts it. Keep track of what you owe with our qada salah tracker and work out amounts with the fidya and kaffarah calculator.

Charity and non-inheriting relatives

Within the one third you may give to a masjid, a madrasa, a well, a Qur'an teaching project or the poor. You may also remember relatives who do not inherit: an orphaned grandchild who is blocked from inheriting because your own son is alive, a step-child, a cousin, a carer or a loyal friend. In the Hanafi school a bequest to a non-Muslim relative (one not at war with Muslims) is also valid, even though a Muslim and a non-Muslim do not inherit from each other.

Children, executor and funeral wishes

Name a trusted guardian for young children, and an executor (wasi) to carry out the will. The executor should be honest, capable and preferably understand Islamic inheritance. Ask that your funeral follow the sunnah: a quick washing and burial, a plain shroud, no wailing or wasteful customs, and duas rather than costly gatherings.

What do Hanafi scholars say about a will for fidya and Hajj?

Hanafi books of fiqh discuss these questions in detail. In summary:

• Fidya for prayers and fasts. If a person bequeaths it, it is paid from the one third. For each missed fast and each missed obligatory prayer, including Witr, the fidya equals one sadaqat al-fitr. Check the current local amount announced by your local scholars or masjid.
• Unpaid zakat. In the Hanafi school it is not taken from the estate automatically like a debt to people. It is paid only if the deceased bequeathed it, and then from the one third.
• An obligatory Hajj never performed. If the person bequeathed it, a Hajj badal is sent on their behalf from the one third, from their home town if the third is enough, otherwise from wherever the third allows.
• No heirs at all. If a person truly has no heirs, Hanafi scholars allow a bequest of more than a third, since the limit exists to protect heirs.
• Gifts in the final illness. A gift made during the illness that leads to death is treated like a bequest: limited to a third, and not to an heir without the others' consent.

What does a simple Islamic will look like?

A wasiyyah does not need complicated wording. A clear outline is enough.

• Name and date. Your full name, address and the date of writing.
• Statement of faith. That you bear witness there is no god but Allah and Muhammad ﷺ is His Messenger, and that you wish your estate to be handled by Islamic law.
• Advice to family. A short reminder to hold to the prayer, fear Allah and keep family ties, as the righteous have always done.
• Debts, trusts and duties. Who you owe, who owes you, trusts to return, and any zakat, fidya or Hajj to be paid.
• Bequests. What share (up to one third) goes to which person or cause.
• The rest. A statement that everything remaining is to be divided among the heirs by the Islamic shares.
• Executor, guardian and funeral wishes. Names and short instructions.
• Signature and two witnesses. Signed by you and two reliable adult witnesses who are not beneficiaries.

You can change or cancel the will at any time while alive, by writing a new one or by actions that show you have withdrawn a bequest, such as selling the item. A bequest only takes effect on death.

What are the common mistakes in a Muslim's will?

• Giving everything to one child. Leaving the house to one son or the estate to the eldest is a bequest to an heir and is not valid without the others' consent.
• Disinheriting an heir. You cannot cut a child or spouse out of the share Allah gave them, whatever the family quarrel.
• Only telling people verbally. Spoken wishes are forgotten, denied or disputed. Write it down and have it witnessed.
• Forgetting the wife's mehr. Unpaid mehr is a debt and must be settled before anything else is shared.
• Hiding the will. A will no one can find does nothing. Tell your executor where it is.
• Never reviewing it. Marriage, children, a death in the family or new property can make an old will unfair or unclear.

Is an Islamic will valid under the law of your country?

Rules differ from country to country. In some places Muslim inheritance is already governed by Islamic personal law; in others, if you die without a will made in the correct legal form, the state divides your estate by its own rules, which may not follow the Islamic shares at all. Speak to a qualified local lawyer, and if possible one familiar with Islamic wills, so your wasiyyah is written in a form the courts will accept.

Keep the original safe and easy to find, give a copy to your executor, and review it whenever your family or wealth changes. For questions about your own situation, ask a qualified scholar of Hanafi fiqh, since the details of every estate differ.

If you are learning about duties that come with adult life, our guide to the rights of parents, spouse and neighbours is a good next read, and you can find free sheets for the whole family in our Library.

Sources

1. The Qur'an, Surah Al-Baqarah (2), verses 180-182; Surah An-Nisa (4), verses 11-12; Surah Al-Ma'idah (5), verse 106.
2. Sahih al-Bukhari, hadith 2738: a Muslim should not spend two nights without his will written.
3. Sahih al-Bukhari, hadith 2742: Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas and the one-third limit.
4. Jami' at-Tirmidhi, hadith 2120: there is no bequest for an heir.
5. Sahih Muslim, hadith 1631: deeds end except three.
6. Sahih al-Bukhari, hadith 2587: be fair between your children in gifts.