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Start here 3

The registry itself, the Hub home, and the inheritance calculator.

• Your faraid, in dollars. Your will, on record.
• What every Muslim family in Canada should know before it matters.
• Islamic Inheritance Calculator

Directory 525

Mosques, Islamic schools and Muslim cemeteries, by city — including who to call for janazah.

Answers 501

Real questions from Muslim families, grouped by how they start.

By province 79

Intestacy, probate and will formalities — the law is provincial.

• Islamic Wills in AlbertaChallenging a Will in Alberta · Finding a Will in Alberta · Dying Without a Will in Alberta · Probate in Alberta · Making a Valid Will in Alberta
• Islamic Wills in British ColumbiaChallenging a Will in British Columbia · Finding a Will in British Columbia · Dying Without a Will in British Columbia · Probate in British Columbia · Making a Valid Will in British Columbia
• Islamic Wills in ManitobaChallenging a Will in Manitoba · Finding a Will in Manitoba · Dying Without a Will in Manitoba · Probate in Manitoba · Making a Valid Will in Manitoba
• Islamic Wills in New BrunswickChallenging a Will in New Brunswick · Finding a Will in New Brunswick · Dying Without a Will in New Brunswick · Probate in New Brunswick · Making a Valid Will in New Brunswick
• Islamic Wills in Newfoundland and LabradorChallenging a Will in Newfoundland and Labrador · Finding a Will in Newfoundland and Labrador · Dying Without a Will in Newfoundland and Labrador · Probate in Newfoundland and Labrador · Making a Valid Will in Newfoundland and Labrador
• Islamic Wills in Northwest TerritoriesChallenging a Will in Northwest Territories · Finding a Will in Northwest Territories · Dying Without a Will in Northwest Territories · Probate in Northwest Territories · Making a Valid Will in Northwest Territories
• Islamic Wills in Nova ScotiaChallenging a Will in Nova Scotia · Finding a Will in Nova Scotia · Dying Without a Will in Nova Scotia · Probate in Nova Scotia · Making a Valid Will in Nova Scotia
• Islamic Wills in NunavutChallenging a Will in Nunavut · Finding a Will in Nunavut · Dying Without a Will in Nunavut · Probate in Nunavut · Making a Valid Will in Nunavut
• Islamic Wills in OntarioChallenging a Will in Ontario · Finding a Will in Ontario · Dying Without a Will in Ontario · Probate in Ontario · Making a Valid Will in Ontario
• Islamic Wills in Prince Edward IslandChallenging a Will in Prince Edward Island · Finding a Will in Prince Edward Island · Dying Without a Will in Prince Edward Island · Probate in Prince Edward Island · Making a Valid Will in Prince Edward Island
• Islamic Wills in QuebecChallenging a Will in Quebec · Finding a Will in Quebec · Dying Without a Will in Quebec · Probate in Quebec · Making a Valid Will in Quebec
• Islamic Wills in SaskatchewanChallenging a Will in Saskatchewan · Finding a Will in Saskatchewan · Dying Without a Will in Saskatchewan · Probate in Saskatchewan · Making a Valid Will in Saskatchewan
• Islamic Wills in YukonChallenging a Will in Yukon · Finding a Will in Yukon · Dying Without a Will in Yukon · Probate in Yukon · Making a Valid Will in Yukon

Glossary 225

Islamic and Canadian estate-law terms, each given from both sides.

Funeral costs 12

What a Muslim burial actually costs, by region.

The madhhab register 61

Where the four Sunni schools differ on inheritance — and where they agree — with sources.

• A child in the womb when the deceased died
• A discretionary trust interest — is anything owned?
• A gift made in the final illness — gift or bequest?
• A grandchild whose parent died first
• A sister inheriting beside a daughter
• An heir dies before the estate is divided
• An heir who has gone missing (al-mafqud)
• An heir who killed the deceased
• Assets that pass outside the estate — are they part of the tarikah?
• Autopsy and the inviolability of the dead body
• Can the fixed shares be varied by agreement?
• Can the heirs agree to divide differently from the faraid?
• Dhawu al-arham — do distant kin inherit?
• Do brothers and sisters who inherit nothing still cut the mother’s share?
• Do life insurance proceeds enter the estate?
• Does a divorced spouse inherit?
• Does a grandfather exclude the deceased’s brothers and sisters?
• Does a surviving spouse share in the radd?
• Does an heir’s share vest the moment the person dies?
• Funeral costs against a debt secured on the estate
• Ghusl, kafan and salat al-janazah — who performs them?
• Hadanah and wilayah — who cares for a child, and who has authority over the child
• Hajb — when does one heir shut another out?
• How quickly must the estate be distributed?
• How soon must a Muslim be buried?
• Interest money in the estate — what must the heirs do?
• Is a Muslim obliged to write a will?
• Is a trust recognised in fiqh, and is waqf the closest thing?
• Is commercial life insurance permissible?
• Is the estate valued at the date of death or the date of distribution?
• Kalalah — who inherits when there is no parent and no child?
• Making a wasiyyah — form, capacity and revocation
• Marital property and the estate
• May a Muslim donate organs, and direct it in a will?
• May a Muslim take another school’s position on one question?
• May a woman be appointed wasi?
• May the wasi be paid out of the estate?
• Must a Muslim be buried in a Muslim cemetery?
• Must a parent give children equally in life?
• Radd — the return of a surplus to the fixed-share heirs
• The grandmother’s sixth — and whether a living father shuts out his own mother
• The half-sister’s completing sixth — takmilat al-thuluthayn
• The mushtaraka case — do the full brothers share the uterine siblings’ third?
• The one-third cap on a bequest
• The order of payment out of an estate
• The residuary heirs (asabah) and their order
• The two ‘Umariyyatan cases
• The two-to-one ratio between a son and a daughter
• Two executors — may one act alone?
• Two heirs die in the same accident
• Unpaid mahr when the husband dies
• Unpaid religious dues — zakat, kaffarah, an unperformed hajj
• What a father and a mother inherit
• What a husband and a wife inherit
• When does a child get their inheritance outright?
• When is a lifetime gift complete and beyond recall?
• When must the heirs’ consent be given?
• When the fixed shares over-subscribe the estate, is everyone reduced?
• Which marriages let a spouse inherit
• Who may be appointed wasi (executor and guardian)
• Withdrawing treatment, and when a person is dead

Islamic law in Canada 9

Sharia and fiqh, and how they meet Canadian law.

• Death, burial and inheritance: where Islamic and Canadian law meet
• Does sharia apply in Canada?
• Halal food rules and Canadian labelling law
• How Islamic law is derived: Qur'an, Sunnah, ijma' and qiyas
• Nikah, mahr and divorce
• Riba, interest and halal finance in Canada
• The Ontario debate, 2003–2006
• The law of worship: prayer, fasting, zakat and hajj in Canada
• What is sharia — and why it isn't the same thing as fiqh

Case studies 100

Real family situations worked through, every share calculated.

• My brother died unmarried with no children. Our parents have passed away.
• My father died leaving my grandfather and my two uncles — his brothers.
• My father died leaving my grandfather and one uncle.
• My father died leaving my mother, me, and my three sisters.
• My father died leaving only me, his daughter.
• My father died with a $300,000 RRSP naming only my brother, and $200,000 in the estate.
• My father died, and my brother died a month later before anything was distributed.
• My father died, leaving a son and a daughter and both his parents.
• My father died, leaving a son and a daughter and his mother.
• My father died, leaving his mother and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving his mother and one brother.
• My father died, leaving his mother and one sister.
• My father died, leaving his mother and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My father died, leaving his mother and two half-sisters through the father.
• My father died, leaving his mother, his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving his mother, his paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My father died, leaving his mother, his paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My father died, leaving his mother, his paternal grandfather and two half-sisters through the father.
• My father died, leaving his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving his paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My father died, leaving his paternal grandfather and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My father died, leaving his paternal grandfather.
• My father died, leaving one daughter and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving one daughter and his mother.
• My father died, leaving one daughter and one brother.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his mother and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his mother and his paternal grandfather.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his mother and one brother.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his mother, his paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My father died, leaving one daughter, his paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My father died, leaving one son and both his parents.
• My father died, leaving one son and his mother.
• My father died. He had converted to Islam; my mother and siblings are not Muslim.
• My grandfather died leaving no children — just his father's line and his brothers.
• My husband died and I am his only heir — no children, no parents, no siblings.
• My husband died and left an unpaid mahr of $20,000.
• My husband died in British Columbia. We have one son and three daughters.
• My husband died leaving me, his mother, my two half-brothers through her, and his two full brothers.
• My husband died leaving me, our two daughters, and his father.
• My husband died, leaving me and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and a son and a daughter and both his parents.
• My husband died, leaving me and a son and a daughter.
• My husband died, leaving me and both his parents.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother and one sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother and two half-sisters through the father.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother, his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother, his paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his mother, his paternal grandfather and two half-sisters through the father.
• My husband died, leaving me and his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My husband died, leaving me and his paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and his paternal grandfather and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter and his mother.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter and his paternal grandfather.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter and one brother.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter, his mother and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter, his mother and his paternal grandfather.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter, his mother and one brother.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter, his mother, his paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My husband died, leaving me and one daughter, his paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My husband died, leaving me and one son and both his parents.
• My husband died, leaving me and one son and his mother.
• My husband died, leaving me and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My husband died. I am pregnant, and we have one young son.
• My husband died. We have two sons and a daughter, and his mother is alive.
• My mother died leaving my father, me, and my brother.
• My parents' home was in joint names. My father died first.
• My son died before me. He left a wife and two daughters, and I am still alive.
• My son died leaving a wife, no children, and me — his mother — plus his full brother.
• My wife died leaving me, her mother, and two half-brothers through her mother.
• My wife died leaving me, our son, and both her parents.
• My wife died, leaving me and a son and a daughter and both her parents.
• My wife died, leaving me and a son and a daughter and her mother.
• My wife died, leaving me and a son and a daughter.
• My wife died, leaving me and her mother and a brother and a sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and her mother and one brother.
• My wife died, leaving me and her mother and one sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and her mother and two half-sisters through the father.
• My wife died, leaving me and her mother, her paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and her paternal grandfather and a brother and a sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and her paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My wife died, leaving me and her paternal grandfather and one sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and her paternal grandfather and two half-siblings through the mother and two full brothers.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter and a brother and a sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter and her mother.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter and her paternal grandfather.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter and one brother.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter, her mother and a brother and a sister.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter, her mother and her paternal grandfather.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter, her mother and one brother.
• My wife died, leaving me and one daughter, her paternal grandfather and one brother.
• My wife died, leaving me and one son and her mother.
• My wife died, leaving me and one son.
• My wife died, leaving me and two half-sisters through the father.
• My wife died. We have no children. Both her parents are alive.

In-depth guides 16

• Beneficiary designations: the quiet defeat of an Islamic will
• Can an Islamic Will Be Challenged in Canada?
• Dying without a will in Canada: what actually happens
• Faraid explained: how the fixed shares actually work
• Finding a will in Canada when there is no registry
• Guardianship and children's shares in an Islamic will
• I Want My Estate Divided Islamically, Under Canadian Law
• I Wrote a Will Years Ago. Does It Still Count?
• Islamic Wills in Canada: The Complete Guide
• Janazah and the first 72 hours: a practical guide
• Probate in Canada: the process, the cost, the delay
• Tax on death in Canada for Muslim families
• The four madhahib on inheritance: where they agree and where they part
• Wills variation in British Columbia and the faraid distribution
• You've been named executor. What happens first?
• Your RRSP Does Not Follow Your Will

The Executor's Guide 8

• CRA Clearance Certificate: Why Executors Wait Before Distributing
• Estate Planning in Canada: What Actually Needs Doing
• Executor of an Estate: What the Job Actually Involves
• How Long Does It Take to Settle an Estate in Canada?
• How to Find Out if Someone Had a Will
• Power of Attorney in Canada: What It Covers and When It Ends
• Probate in Canada: What It Is, What It Costs, How Long It Takes
• What to Do When Someone Dies in Canada

Checklists 1

• Janazah & Estate Checklist

City index 1

• Cities