Inheritance is the practice of passing on property, titles, debts, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ between societies and have changed over time.
ICAB, in collaboration with the Institute of Ismaili Studies, and at the direction of Mawlana Hazar Imam, has produced Guidelines for Ethical Wealth Transfer and Inheritance Planning to assist Ismaili murids to engage in ethical wealth transfer and inheritance.
What is the formula for property rights under Islamic inheritance laws?
Shares under the Islamic inheritance law depend on the closeness of relation to the deceased. Shares also differ when a person belongs to Sunni or Shia sect.
Individual Women
Inheritance Right
As Mother
1/6th of X
As wife
1/8th of X if she has any children
1/4th of X if she does not have any children
As Daughter
½ of brother’s share, if she has brothers
women having sisters
Sunni/Hanafi - 2/3rd of X is divided equally among themselves
Shia….total inheritance is equally divided among themselves
Women having no siblings
Sunni/Hanafi - 1/2 of X
Shia- All property (X)
X in the above table means “all wealth of the deceased person after settlement of mortgages and loans”.
Why Create a will? As Allah said "It has been ordained upon you, when death is near one of you, leaving wealth behind, to make a will in favor of parents and close relatives, impartially. This is incumbent upon the pious." —Quran 2:180
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ZvUq6cuBEU
"Dastur" on Transfer of Property: If there are no male inheritors or entitled children in the direct line, the estates get transferred to the closest male "SUKUINs" - such as uncles, cousins etc.
Collective views: “Not a handful of Hunza soil should ever be sold to an outsider.” That statement was repeated by several attendants of the gathering and complied well with the old local rule in property dealings where land should be offered to relatives and community members on a priority basis if a sale was unavoidable.
Willed property as an evolving trend is transferred by The Registrar of Properties in the area of Pakistan where the property is situated records all transfers. Courts look at the names on the records of the Building Control Authorities, Local Government (City Government), Excise and Taxation (Property Taxes) and Utility Companies to determine the legal ownership of inherited property in Pakistan.
SPECIAL NOTE: In Hunza traditional practices as well as family-specific practices are still applicable, the outline is as follows:
1. Ancestral non-movable estate is given to the male descendants (sons) only.
2. Equal shares in Land, housing, and commercial structures (if any) with the following guidelines:
a. Cultivable crop land – Eldest son has the first choice.
b. Garden (fruit trees/grass growing land) – Middle son.
c. House – Youngest son
3. Specific to our family – The ancestral estate is treated as an honest trust which cannot be sold and passed on intact to the next generation.
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