Question

My mother passed away, my dad distributed some of the gold to us all, and some will be given to charity, we are only sisters and have no brothers, is this permissible, do we all have to have equal amounts. jazakallah.

Answer

We are very sorry to hear about your loss. May Allah bless your mother and grant her a comfortable abode in the hereafter.

When your mother passed away her inheritors will each become owners of her estate. If the only surviving heirs are her husband and daughters then the daughters will receive 2/3 of the estate which will be split equally between them and her husband will receive the remaining. Exactly how the estate should be divided and which assets will be given to who etc. is to be decided mutually by the heirs.

If your mother had stated that she would like a certain amount to be donated from her estate then up to 1/3 of the estate can be used in fulfilling this request. If she did not make such a request then the entire estate will transfer into the ownership of the heirs.

If your father wishes to donate from his share of the inheritance then that is fine. However, he can not donate from the shares of the remaining inheritors, neither can they be compelled to donate any amount.

Answered by:
Ifta Research Fellow

Checked & Approved by:
Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
Mufti Zubair Patel