Updated: Feb 8, 2023
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Are you curious? - Yes, and that's why you are here to learn more about estate planning.
Are you a Muslim? - Yes, and that's why you are here to learn more about Islamic estate planning.
Are you confused? - Yes, I was too when I started my journey on estate planning in 2016, right before Hajj (i.e., Muslim pilgrimage), when I wanted to create my estate plan but did not know where to start. It was a difficult moment for me and I imagine for you too.
Estate planning is a complex subject, but we are not here to overwhelm you with all the information you may need.
We will give you a nudge!
Let us start with the five most important questions.
You know that you will need to create an estate plan in a lifetime but do not know where to start.
To answer whether you need an estate plan or not! The answer is yes, you would definitely need an estate plan to protect the estates you earned in a lifetime, to protect inheritors, and to protect your values and, most importantly, beliefs.
Would you need an Islamic estate plan? You would not need an estate plan that is compliant legally, which is useless for Muslims. Instead, you would need an Islamic estate plan. I do not want to go into many details but read Holy Quran Surah An-Nisa, where Allah (Subhanahu Wa Ta Aaala) emphasized the expectations about protecting your inheritance.
I came across one of a Muslim Canadian and he asked me a question since we live in Canada: Can we create an Islamic estate plan because legal laws apply. It's a valid question, but for Muslims, we cannot create an estate plan that is not compliant with shariah because we have clear direction from the Holy Quran and many Hadiths (i.e., the Prophet's sayings). I know you will have similar confusion and do not know what to do due to the complexity of legal laws that's where Wassiyyah comes to help you.
There are more than 50 Muslim majority countries but that's not where all Muslims live. India, for example, is a country of more than 200 million Muslims. In many Muslim non-majority countries such as the United States, Canada, Australia, and Europe, Muslims are immigrants and they own assets internationally. If you want to donate entire properties overseas, then you would not need a worldwide estate plan, but I am sure you would not do that.
I have seen some of the videos online on Islamic estate planning, and your answer is not fully satisfactory. Let me give you examples. The typical answers would be.
You can create one Islamic Will for all countries.
Create Islamic Will in every country you own the assets.
You do not need Islamic Will for other countries as the Will you create in your residence country is adequate.
All these answers are not correct but you would definitely need an estate plan that is compliant worldwide. Wassiyyah can help you create your worldwide Islamic Wills that are called Multi-Jurisdiction Islamic Will and the International Islamic Will.
It is an interesting question as all sorts of the terminology you would find across the internet but we will give you a small formula to remember.
If you want to protect assets and protect an inheritance, create Islamic Wills or Trust. The Islamic Will has the legal laws in the majority of world countries and they laid down specific requirements. Wassiyyah has studied all the requirements for your Islamic Will to be compliant. The popularity of creating Trust or Waqf is also rising, especially in non-Muslim majority countries. However, Trust or Waqf may not be suitable for most people because there are not many millionaires in the world in terms of money. Islamic Will would be suitable for most people but it may differ from one case to another.
If you have assets overseas or nationally and if you want to manage assets remotely, you can create a Power of Attorney for Property. The laws for Power of Attorney for Property differ from one jurisdiction to another (for Canada, the United States, Australia, and some European countries). Wassiyyah offers jurisdiction (i.e., State, Province, or Territory) specific Power of Attorney for Property and country-specific for the rest of the world.
If you want to appoint someone to look after your medical and daily needs, you can create a Power of Attorney for Healthcare. The laws for Power of Attorney for Healthcare differ from one jurisdiction to another (for Canada, the United States, Australia, and some European countries). Wassiyyah offers jurisdiction (i.e., State, Province, or Territory) specific Power of Attorney for Healthcare and country-specific for the rest of the world. Power of Attorney for Healthcare is also called a Personal directive Personal medical directive or a Personal healthcare directive.
If you want to appoint someone to make decisions on your behalf regarding medical treatment, you create Living Will. The laws for Living Will differ from one jurisdiction to another (for Canada, the United States, Australia, and some European countries). Wassiyyah offers jurisdiction (i.e., State, Province, or Territory) specific Living Will for Healthcare and country-specific for the rest of the world. Living Will is also called a Medical directive, Healthcare directive, or Advance healthcare directive.