Estimate each heir's share of an estate

Faraid (Islamic inheritance)

Estimate Islamic (Faraid) inheritance shares for the common case of a surviving spouse, children, and parents.

Formula

Fixed Quranic shares (fard) are allocated first, then any residue passes to residuary heirs (asabah) — sons alongside daughters, or the father alone if there are only daughters or no children.

Assumptions

• Covers only the common case of a spouse, children, and parents surviving — it does NOT model siblings, grandparents, grandchildren, or other relatives, all of which can change these shares.
• Follows Sunni (Shafi'i) Faraid rules as commonly applied in Malaysia — other schools of thought may calculate certain shares differently.
• Assumes the estate value entered is the net estate — after funeral expenses, debts, and any Islamic will (wasiyyah, capped at 1/3 of the estate and only payable to non-heirs) have already been deducted.
• Multiple wives are not modeled separately — if more than one wife survives, they share the wife's portion shown here equally among themselves.
• Any share left over is shown as "unallocated" rather than redistributed. In practice, where no residuary (asabah) heir survives, Malaysian faraid applies radd — the surplus returns proportionally to the fixed-share heirs, excluding the spouse — so a real distribution would usually allocate that remainder rather than leave it unassigned.
• This is for general estimation and educational purposes only — always consult a qualified faraid officer, the Syariah court, or Amanah Raya Berhad for an actual estate distribution, especially if any relatives beyond spouse/children/parents survive.

Frequently asked questions

Why does the calculator show an "unallocated" amount sometimes?
That happens when the modeled heirs (spouse, children, parents) don't fully absorb the estate — meaning other relatives this calculator doesn't cover, like siblings or grandparents, may be legally entitled to the remainder. Consult a faraid officer to identify and calculate their shares.

What is the "Gharrawayn" case mentioned in the formula?
It's a specific, well-known exception: when both parents and a spouse survive but there are no children, the mother's usual 1/3 share is instead calculated as 1/3 of what's left after the spouse's share is taken out — not 1/3 of the whole estate. This calculator applies that exception automatically when it detects this combination.

Why is a son's share always double a daughter's share?
This 2:1 ratio is a specific, fixed rule from the Quran (An-Nisa 4:11) for residuary distribution among children, reflecting differing financial responsibilities assigned in the Islamic inheritance system — it applies specifically to the residue split between sons and daughters, not to every heir category.

Can I use this for a family with siblings, grandparents, or multiple wives?
No — this calculator is deliberately scoped to spouse, children, and parents only. Adding siblings, grandparents, or additional relatives changes several of these rules (for example, two or more siblings reduce the mother's share), so those cases need a proper faraid calculation from a qualified officer or Amanah Raya Berhad.

Sources

• Amanah Raya Berhad — Faraid distribution