Does the gift of usufruct of a house during the grantor's lifetime to the grantee, until the latter's death, require the consent of the heirs, especially if there are minors among them?
A gift (hibah) from someone legally competent to dispose of their property, and not made during a death illness, does not require the consent of the heirs. However, if the gift is from someone not legally competent to dispose of their property, or if it is made during a death illness, then it is treated like a bequest (wasiyyah).
As for a gift with a specified term, conditioned on the death of the donee (al-umra), the majority of jurists (Hanafis, Shafi'is, and Hanbalis) hold that it constitutes the transfer of ownership of the asset itself, and the donee and their heirs own it, never reverting to the donor. However, the Malikis view it as the transfer of usufruct (manfa'ah) and not the asset itself, and it returns to the donor upon the death of the donee.
If the gift is conditioned on the death of the donor, the Shafi'is, according to the more sound opinion, do not consider it valid.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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