Should Inheritance be Half the Share of Sons for Daughters Even if They Are the Only Ones Who Live and Serve Their Parents?

Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel

Question

In light of women and men now working (sons and daughters) and a growing expectation by sons/brothers for parents/sisters to provide for themselves/have split roles- what are the Islamic guidelines for inheritance provisions parents should make?

The specific example in my case is daughters who live with and contribute to parents; and sons who live separately and do not think they should pay towards parents/sisters, are parents and sisters okay to leave their home/inheritance to their daughters/parents only in this case, so they have a secure home or despite the above, should inheritance still be split with daughters receiving half the share of sons?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your valuable question. I empathize with your situation and the contribution of women who serve and contribute toward their parents.

Inheritance – Divine Distribution to Avoid Disputes

Inheritance is a matter which is a clearly ordained distribution of wealth to remove any family dispute and indifference after the death of a deceased person. This will have to be followed after the death of a deceased.

Allah Most High said, “Allah commands you regarding your children: the share of the male will be twice that of the female.” [Quran, 4:11]

According to the Islamic law of inheritance, a female—whether she is a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter, etc.—gets one of the shares, depending on her closeness to the deceased, as a wife, 1/4th. 1/8th, as a daughter, 1/2, 2/3, 1/2 of the son, as a mother 1/3, 1/6, as a sister, 1/2, 2/3 and 1/6.

However, the inheritors can mutually agree and give their share to others, leave it for one person, or distribute it how they want amongst themselves willingly.

Women – Half of the Share of Men

One of the wisdom is, Islamically,  the financial commitments of a family are upon the man and not the woman. So, the son has two shares to support his wife and children, whereas the daughter will take her one share for herself and, Islamically, does not have to spend it on her husband and children. [IbnʿAbidin , Radd al-Muhtar]

Your Case

In your case, should one of the parents pass away, the inheritance will split, with the daughters receiving half the share of the sons. It is for the sons to understand that the daughters have been serving and contributing to the parents, so they should let go of their inheritance share and give it to the sibling. Everyone has a right to their share whether they contributed and served the deceased or not. No one can have any grudge about it.

Wise Decision

This leads us to, like in most cases, that it may be wise for a parent to distribute and gift the wealth while they are alive amongst the children to avoid disputes by calling them all in their presence and gifting them. Also, it would be fine if the siblings requested their parents to gift and distribute their wealth while they were alive.

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Related: Transferring Property to Children in One’s Lifetime.

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I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Mawlana Ilyas Patel is a traditionally trained scholar who has studied in the UK, India, Pakistan, Syria, Jordan, and Turkey. He started his early education in the UK. He went on to complete the hifz of the Quran in India, then enrolled in an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied the secular and ‘Aalimiyya sciences. He then traveled to Karachi, Pakistan. He has been an Imam in Rep of Ireland for several years. He has taught hifz of the Quran, Tajwid, Fiqh, and many other Islamic sciences to children and adults onsite and online extensively in the UK and Ireland. He taught at a local Islamic seminary for 12 years in the UK, where he was a librarian and a teacher of Islamic sciences. He currently resides in the UK with his wife. His interest is a love of books and gardening.