Islamic Will & Inheritance FAQ

Waseyat is a platform for Islamic inheritance (Faraid) planning. It includes a calculator that computes your family's inheritance shares under any of the five major schools of Islamic jurisprudence, a guided questionnaire that turns those shares into a printable Islamic will, and drafting tools for Hiba (lifetime gifts) and Waqf (charitable endowments) — every inheritance share and legal clause is linked to its underlying Islamic source, giving you transparency and confidence in every document.

No. You can use the Calculator, Guidance, and How It Works pages without an account. You can also create a document as a guest. However, guest progress is not saved if you leave before completing your document. Registering allows you to save your progress and return later.

Browsing the Calculator, Guidance, and How It Works pages is always free. Creating and downloading a document costs a small one-time fee: $10.00 NZD for a Will, $5.00 NZD for a Waqf deed, and $5.00 NZD for a Hiba deed.

Yes. Waseyat is designed to work on modern smartphones, tablets, and desktop computers, so you can calculate inheritance shares and create your documents from whichever device is most convenient.

Yes. You may use Waseyat to help prepare a document for another person, provided you have their permission and are entering their information accurately. During the document generation process, you can specify the email address where the completed document should be sent.

Faraid is the Islamic law of inheritance — a system of fixed shares for specific heirs, established primarily in the Qur'an (Surah An-Nisa, verses 11–12 and 176) and explained further through the Sunnah. It determines who inherits, and how much, once funeral expenses, debts, and any bequest (wasiyyah) have been settled.

Waseyat supports all five major schools: Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali, and Ja'fari. You choose the one that applies to you, and every computed share is labelled with the specific ruling behind it.

Where a question is genuinely disputed — even within a single school — Waseyat presents every recognised position and asks you to choose, rather than automatically selecting one on your behalf. That choice belongs to you and your own scholar.

Islamic law generally permits a person to make a wasiyyah of up to one-third of their net estate to eligible beneficiaries who are not fixed heirs. Rules concerning bequests to heirs and other circumstances can differ between schools of Islamic jurisprudence. Waseyat follows the school and recognised rulings selected by you.

Waseyat's calculations and document clauses are based on the Qur'an, authentic Sunnah, and recognised juristic works from the school of Islamic jurisprudence selected by the user. Where recognised differences of opinion exist, Waseyat identifies the relevant positions rather than presenting one view as universally applicable.

Under the classical rulings of Islamic inheritance law, a non-Muslim does not ordinarily inherit from a Muslim through the fixed Faraid shares. However, a Muslim may generally make a wasiyyah (bequest) of up to one-third of their estate to a non-heir, subject to the applicable Islamic rules. If you're unsure how these rulings apply to your circumstances, consult a qualified Islamic scholar.

Before the estate is distributed among the heirs, funeral expenses and outstanding debts are settled, followed by any valid wasiyyah, according to the applicable Islamic rules. The remaining estate is then distributed among the eligible heirs.

Islamic jurisprudence contains recognised differences of opinion on certain issues. Waseyat supports all five major schools of Islamic jurisprudence and, where appropriate, presents recognised scholarly positions instead of making the decision for you — so you can follow the opinion that best reflects your beliefs or the advice of your scholar.

Every inheritance calculation is performed according to the rules of the school of Islamic jurisprudence you select. Each result is supported by references to the relevant Qur'anic verses, authentic Hadith, and recognised juristic rulings, so you can understand how each share has been determined.

Every inheritance calculation and document clause is based on recognised Islamic sources, including the Qur'an, authentic Sunnah, and authoritative juristic works of the school of Islamic jurisprudence you select. Rather than giving unexplained results, Waseyat includes references so you can understand the basis of each ruling and verify it for yourself.

A Will distributes your estate after death, combining your Faraid shares with any wasiyyah. A Hiba is an immediate, unconditional gift made during your lifetime — once possession transfers, it's outside your estate entirely. A Waqf is a permanent endowment: the asset itself is preserved forever, and only its benefit is distributed to a charitable cause or your descendants. See the Hiba & Waqf page for the full detail.

Waseyat prepares documents based on Islamic principles, but it does not create jurisdiction-specific legal instruments. Legal requirements for signing, witnessing, registration, and execution vary by country and jurisdiction. We recommend having your document reviewed by a qualified legal professional before signing or executing it.

Yes, if you are a registered user. Your in-progress information is saved to your account, allowing you to leave and return later.

Guest users can complete a document without registering, but their progress is not saved if they leave the process.

Once you generate a document, it opens as a printable draft in your browser, and a PDF copy is also emailed automatically to the address you choose on the Review step — your account's registered address by default, or a different one if you're preparing the document on someone else's behalf.

You can edit your information freely at any time before you generate your Will. After you generate it, your full legal name is locked, but you can still edit other details and regenerate an updated version -- at no extra charge -- for up to 7 days after payment, or until you mark it Completed, whichever comes first. Once that window closes, your information is removed and you'll need to start a new Will if your circumstances change.

Major life events such as marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or the death of an heir may affect your inheritance arrangements.

Yes. You can create a new document whenever needed.

For a Will, Waqf, or Hiba, your full legal name is locked once you generate it, but you can keep editing other details and regenerate an updated version -- at no extra charge -- for up to 7 days after payment, or until you mark it Completed, whichever comes first. After that, the information used to create it is removed from our system.

If your circumstances change after that point, or you need to prepare a document for someone else, you can start a new one with your updated information -- so one account can be used to prepare documents for multiple different people, one at a time.

Marriage, divorce, the birth of a child, or the death of a family member can all affect Islamic inheritance shares. If your circumstances change, you should generate a new Will — Your Will and inheritance calculations should reflect your current family circumstances.

Yes. Once your document has been generated, you can print it for signing and safekeeping. A PDF copy is also emailed to whichever address you chose to send it to, for your records.

Listing your assets in your Will is optional, but providing this information can make it easier for your executor to identify and administer your estate. If you choose to include an asset list, you should include all assets that form part of your estate, such as cash, bank accounts, investments, business interests, vehicles, real estate, personal belongings, and other valuable assets. You may also include any outstanding debts and financial obligations to help your executor identify and settle them before the estate is distributed.

Yes. If you have minor children, your Will lets you nominate one or more guardians to care for them should both parents pass away. The appointment of guardians is subject to the laws of your country, so you should seek legal advice to ensure your wishes can be carried out.

Yes. Waseyat allows you to nominate an executor to administer your estate and carry out the instructions in your Will. The legal requirements and responsibilities of an executor vary by jurisdiction, so we recommend confirming your appointment with a qualified legal professional.

Yes. You may change your selected school of Islamic jurisprudence at any time before generating your document. Waseyat automatically recalculates the inheritance shares to reflect your new selection.

No. Waseyat provides Islamic inheritance guidance and prepares Islamic Will, Hiba, and Waqf documents based on your selected school of Islamic jurisprudence. It does not provide legal advice. As legal requirements differ between countries, we recommend having your document reviewed by a qualified legal professional before signing or executing it.

Yes. Waseyat can be used anywhere in the world. However, the legal requirements for Wills, witnessing, and execution vary between jurisdictions — we recommend having your document reviewed by a qualified legal professional familiar with the laws of your country.

Accounts are password-protected, and you must verify your email address before you can log in for the first time. If you forget your password, a reset link is sent to your registered email.

Only you. Your family and estate information is kept private and is not shared with anyone else.

If you are signed in, only you can access your in-progress document through your account and the Will document will be sent only to the email address you specify during the generation process.

We only keep your information for as long as it is needed to prepare your document.

If you are a registered user, your information is securely stored while your document is in progress, allowing you to save your progress and return later. If you continue as a guest, your progress is available only during your current session -- and after payment, only for as long as you keep using that same session, since a guest account has no login to recover it from elsewhere.

For a Will, Waqf, or Hiba, once you've generated a document, your information is removed once you mark it Completed, or automatically 7 days after payment if you haven't -- until then you can keep editing it (aside from your full legal name) and regenerating it at no extra charge. Your registered account information, such as your email address, is retained either way so you can continue using your account.