Inheritance Ruling Between Muslims and People of the Book

Can a Muslim Inherit from a Jew or Christian?


Source: Fatāwā Amonpuri by Shaykh Ghulam Mustafa Zaheer Amonpuri


Question:
Can a Muslim inherit from a Jew or a Christian?


Answer:
A Muslim and a disbeliever cannot inherit from one another. Jews and Christians are also disbelievers; hence, they cannot inherit from Muslims, nor can Muslims inherit from them.


  • Usāmah ibn Zayd رضي الله عنه narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
    لا يرث المسلم الكافر ولا الكافر المسلم
    “A Muslim cannot inherit from a disbeliever, nor can a disbeliever inherit from a Muslim.”
    (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 6764, Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 1614)

❀ Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah رحمه الله (728H) said:
اتفق المسلمون على أن اليهودي والنصراني لا يرث مسلما ولو كان ابنه وأباه.
“The Muslims are unanimously agreed that a Jew or a Christian cannot inherit from a Muslim, even if he were his son or his father.”
(al-Jawāb al-Ṣaḥīḥ 2/278)
 
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