Before applying for the management of the estate of a deceased Muslim, heirs need to take several initial steps to ensure that the process of distributing the estate runs smoothly and complies with Islamic law and Malaysian legislation.
Important things before distributing the estate for Muslims:
- Identify abandoned property
- Gather property information
- List the estimated value of each property (if possible)
- Identify the amount of the deceased's property to determine the jurisdiction of the court that will hear the case
- Resolve debt-related matters
Pay the debts of the deceased (including zakat, vows, bank debts, etc.)
- Matrimonial property claims (if relevant)
- Identify assets purchased during the marriage and whether there were joint contributions
- Make a claim for marital property at the Syariah High Court
- The spouse's share claimed and confirmed as marital property will be removed from the estate
- Check if the deceased has a will/gift
If there is a valid will/gift according to Islamic law, the will/gift must be executed first.
- Identify eligible heirs
Determine who is still alive and has the right to inherit the estate (according to Faraid law)
Make sure the heir's identification documents such as MyKad/birth certificate are available
- Application for Faraid certificate (if required):
The Syariah Court will confirm the list of entitled heirs and their respective shares according to faraid.