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Fatwa CenterDied leaving a full sister, a nephew from a full brother and a full paternal uncle
Question
Assalaamu alaykum. Please calculate the inheritance according to the following information:
- Does the deceased have male relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A nephew from a full brother) Number 1 (A full paternal uncle) Number 1
- Does the deceased have female relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A full sister) Number 1
- Information about the deceased’s debts: (Did not pay zakah that was due) (Did not perform Hajj despite having the financial ability, and no one has performed it on his behalf yet.)
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
Firstly, the rights of Allaah must be fulfilled; namely, the unpaid zakah and the expenses of the obligatory Hajj; and the rights owed to people (debts) must be settled before the division of the estate. If the deceased left a will in favor of a non-heir, then it must also be taken out of the remaining amount as long as it does not exceed one third of that amount. What is left of the estate after these rights are fulfilled is what should be divided among the heirs; Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {...after any bequest he (may have) made or debt.} [Quran 4:11]
If the deceased did not leave other heirs entitled to inherit other than those mentioned in the question, then the remainder of the estate should be divided among them as follows:
The deceased's full sister gets half of the estate as a fixed share because she is the only sister of the deceased and because of the lack of the children (direct heirs) of the deceased and given the absence of an 'Asabah (blood male relatives from her father's side) at her level who would inherit with her; Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {If a man dies, leaving no child but (only) a sister, she will have half of what he left} [Quran 4: 176]
The deceased's nephew (son of the full brother) gets the remainder of the estate by virtue of Ta‘seeb (i.e. by virtue of having a paternal relation with the deceased and not having an allotted share, so he gets what is left after the allotted shares have been distributed) because he is the closest male heir. The Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said, “Give the Faraa'idh (shares of inheritance prescribed in the Quran) to those who are entitled to receive them. Whatever remains is for the closest male relative.” [Al-Bukhari and Muslim]
The deceased's paternal uncle (the father's full brother) has no share in the estate because he is excluded by the presence of the nephew (son of the full brother). However, the heirs should willingly give him a share; Allaah, The Exalted, says (what means): {And when (other) relatives and orphans and the needy are present at the (time of the) division, then provide for them (something) out of the estate and speak to them words of appropriate kindness.} [Quran 4:8]
Thus, the estate should be divided into two shares; the full sister gets one share and the nephew gets one share.
Allaah knows best.
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