Does anything befall the deceased if his children delay the repayment of his debt, which he instructed them to settle before his death?

If a deceased person leaves behind an estate, the heirs are obligated to first prepare and shroud the deceased using the estate, then settle any debts, and then execute any bequests from one-third of the estate before its distribution, in accordance with the Almighty's saying: (after any bequest which he may have made or any debt). Debts are given precedence over bequests by consensus.

If the debt is due immediately, its payment must be expedited, because the soul of a believer is suspended by his debt until it is paid on his behalf. This encourages the heirs to settle the deceased's debt. However, if the debt is deferred, it remains on its term if the heirs commit to paying it or provide a guarantor.

Heirs are not obligated to pay the deceased's debt if he did not leave any property; rather, the debt is settled from his estate. A father's instruction to his children to pay his debt in the absence of an estate does not obligate them to comply, but it is commendable for them to do so out of filial piety.

The debt that withholds its owner from Paradise is that for which he left sufficient assets but did not make a will concerning it, or was able to pay it but did not, or borrowed it for an unjustified reason or in extravagance. As for one who borrowed due to need or hardship and died without leaving sufficient assets, it is hoped that this warning does not apply to him, nor to one who intended to pay the debt at the time of borrowing.