Back to search

How is the inheritance divided if the heirs are: a father, a paternal uncle, a paternal half-uncle from the father's side, a full paternal cousin, two paternal half-cousins from the father's side, a mother, a wife, and three full sisters?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

If the heirs are restricted to the father, mother, and wife only, then the wife receives one-fourth, due to the absence of a lineal descendant, as Allah Almighty says: "And for them (wives) is one fourth of what you leave if you have no child." The mother receives one-sixth, due to the presence of a group of siblings, as Allah Almighty says: "But if he has brothers, then for his mother is one sixth." The father receives the remainder by way of residuary inheritance, based on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: "Give the prescribed shares to those who are entitled to them, and what remains is for the closest male heir." The inheritance is divided into twelve shares: two shares for the mother, three shares for the wife, and the remaining seven shares for the father. Sisters reduce the mother's share from one-third to one-sixth, even if they are themselves excluded from inheritance by the father. The matter of inheritances must be submitted to the Sharia courts for investigation and to ensure there are no wills, debts, or other rights that take precedence over the heirs' right.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

Read the full answer on Ftawy