The Inheritance Division is an issue of great significance in Saudi Arabia. It is closely related to the Islamic Sharia Law, which is the main source of the Laws in Saudi Arabia. Taking into account that the inheritance division process is not only a legal procedure that shall be followed, but it is a division that represents a guarantee for achieving justice and protecting the heirs’ rights according to the Islamic Sharia Law. Moreover, the inheritance division process has particular significance due to its influence on the stability of the family and society. The said process ensures the distribution of inheritance fairly. With the aim of achieving such a goal, Saudi Arabia stipulated a set of legal procedures that shall be followed upon dividing the inheritance fairly and properly. These procedures shall include submission of the required documents, identification of the heirs’ share, and settlement of any disputes arising between the stakeholders. Therefore, through this article, we will review the Inheritance Division process procedures that ensure the protection of the heirs’ rights, contribute to preventing the danger of financial disputes arising between the heirs and foster social stability within families.

Definition of Inheritance in Saudi Arabia

The Personal Status Law defines inheritance as “the property and financial rights that a person leaves after death. In other words, inheritance includes all the assets, rights and entitlements that a person leaves after death, provided that this inheritance does not belong to other people. Thus, the conditions for entitlement to inheritance shall be , the actual or constructive death of the intestate; the actual or presumed survival of the heir after death of the intestate; and identification of the ground for entitlement to inheritance. intestate Therefore, the heir may obtain its share in the assets owned by the intestate.

Preliminary Procedures Necessary for the Completion of Inheritance Division in Saudi Arabia

Before the heirs divide their inheritance, they shall perform several important steps with the aim of facilitating each heirs’ papers in the inheritance to be divided:

• According to the aforementioned, the heirs shall obtain a death certificate, considering that they cannot inherit prior to the actual or constructive death of the intestate.
• The determination of inheritance document shall be issued, whereas the judge determines the death proof, date and heirs to whom the inheritance certificate applies.
• The heirs shall obtain Guardianship over the Property of Minors Document in case one of the heirs is a minor. However, such a document shall be obtained in case the minor is young or incapacitated.
• Whereas the mandated will takes priority over the inheritance-related rights, they shall prove the mandated will whether by the intestate approval prior to its death and issuing a document of it or through procedures for its authentication by the heirs if it was authenticated before its death but not proven during its lifetime.
• The heirs shall not leave the inheritance without management until the division date. Usually, the oldest heir manages the inheritance assets till they are divided. This management may be conducted under two main assumptions:
• Assumption 1: The person responsible for the management of the inheritance shall be assigned such task based on authorizations from the remaining heirs. In this case, the person in charge shall be responsible for their actions and may be legally held accountable if it acts outside the scope of his authorized obligations or harms the interests of the heirs.
• Assumption 2: The inheritance may be managed without obtaining authorization of the remaining heirs, which means that the person in charge is not entitled to dispose of the heirs’ shares or make decisions individually. Moreover, in case this person was to appropriate any part of the inheritance without the consent of the remaining heirs, they are entitled to claim their share before the competent court.

Inheritance Division Types in Saudi Arabia

Having considered all the preliminary steps needed to start the inheritance division procedures in Saudi Arabia, the heirs were able to commence the inheritance division procedures. Significantly, inheritance division types do not deviate from two types or methods: consensual division or compulsory division.

- Consensual distribution of inheritance

Upon addressing the Mutually Consented Division, we shall start with the fact that it occurs under the agreement of all the heirs to divide the inheritance religiously. The heirs meet the legal representative of the absent heirs; they restrict the debts with regard to the inheritance, including the debts owed by the intestate and the bad debts. Thus, all the inheritance assets shall be restricted, including properties, companies, establishments, other assets, money, companies’ shares or debts bonds. It could also include movables, such as clothes, mobile phones and cars.

It is notable that in case the heirs were not able to know all the assets owned by the intestate, the heirs are entitled to address any official authority such as the Ministry of Justice, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Housing or the Saudi Capital Market Authority or to ask the heirs or relatives of the intestate without resorting to Justice.

In this context, it is worth remembering the existence of the Entrustment and Liquidation Center (Infath) in Saudi Arabia. Infath is a government center of legal personality. Infath is administratively and financially independent, and it works on inventorying the common money and identifying the asset details and its rights.

After the heirs inventory the inheritance, they may proceed to evaluate all the inheritance assets in detail. Additionally, this evaluation may be conducted by an Authorized Appraiser in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in order to identify each heir’s shares according to legitimate share. Thus, heirs shall pay all the debts owed by the intestate by conducting certified release with the creditors, and heirs may retain any amounts related to the will of the inheritance. Eventually, the inheritance may be divided between the heirs according to their legitimate shares. Heirs sign a mutually consented division authentication document acknowledging their mutual consent of the inheritance without any compulsion or inequity. Taking into consideration that if the heirs included a minor, and they agreed on the division, the heirs shall register the inheritance division at the Court of Personal Status. Therefore, the heirs are entitled to head into a competent official authority in order to transfer the intestate’s assets according to the agreed division. However, the mutually consented division authentication document shall be deemed a binding force for all the heirs that cannot be revoked. Nevertheless, the aggrieved heirs may fill a lawsuit demanding the abolition of the division, in case the division was oppressive or unfair.

- Compulsory Division

In case we are to speak about the Compulsory Division in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, we shall mention that it arises out of the impossibility of dividing the inheritance between the heirs according to the aforementioned conditions, whether in some or all of them. In this case, the Court of Personal Status shall be responsible for conducting such division; the court is competent to perform such procedure according to the Law of Procedure before Sharia Courts. Furthermore, the Court is competent in inheritance and division, including disputed properties, endowment shares, wills, and minor or absent heirs. The jurisdiction of the Court shall be at the place where the Defendant resides. In case the Defendant does not reside in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Court’s jurisdiction shall take place at the Plaintiff’s place of residence. In case both the Plaintiff and the Defendant do not reside in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the Plaintiff is entitled to file a lawsuit regarding the inheritance division in one of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s city courts.

The Compulsory Division lawsuit in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia shall start with editing the lawsuit, including important information, such as the intestate’s death date and the inheritance it left. Each inheritance shall be specified in detail, and the lawsuit statement demanding division of the inheritance and giving each heir its share and rights shall be attached.

However, during the inheritance division lawsuit advance, the heirs may fill an interlocutory application, provided that these applications conform with the original application of the division lawsuit. The inheritance division lawsuit shall not be suspended unless these division lawsuits may lead to consuming the inheritance. Thus, the court orders to suspend the lawsuit till the final disposition of such disputes.

Eventually, the Court of Personal Status in Saudi Arabia issues its judgment after the judge finishes inventorying the intestate’s debts and properties. The judge orders to pay the debts from the inheritance assets and divides the remaining between the heirs according to their legitimate share.

Assignment of the Inheritance Shares in Saudi Arabia

Assignment means the agreement of heirs or the legatee on leaving their inheritance share or some of it for something known or another. Thus, the withdrawal shall be registered before a competent authority according to the regulative procedures.

Additionally, the heirs may assign their inheritance shares with one another or the legatee in case the inheritance is known for all the assignees or unknown and is impossible to be known in the short term. The court defines this short-term according to the assigned money, its place and amounts. In case the inheritance is known shortly and the assignee has assigned their shares before they know the inheritance assets, the assignee may submit an assignment abolition application.

In case an heir assigned its share with another who is entitled to its share and took the assignee’s place in the inheritance, in case an heir assigned its share with the remaining heirs for a compensation from the inheritance, the share of the assignee heir shall be divided among the remaining heirs in proportion to their shares. Moreover, in case an heir assigned its share with others for a known compensation that is not a part of the inheritance, the assignee’s share shall be divided between the heirs according to the contribution of each, unless they agree otherwise. Additionally, If the contribution of each heir is unknown and the method of dividing the share of the assignee heir is not specified in the assignment agreement, then its share shall be divided among the remaining heirs in proportion to their shares in the estate.

In conclusion, Saudi Arabia demonstrates a solid commitment to fostering the legal and legitimate procedures that guarantee the heirs’ rights upon distributing the inheritance shares. This aligns with its eagerness to apply the Islamic Sharia Law and achieve justice among society members by stipulating precise and regulative mechanisms. The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia strives to execute the division process fairly and justly, contributing to the stability of families and fostering social cohesion. Furthermore, this concern about protecting the heirs’ rights reflects the Kingdom's vision of building a society based on justice and equity. It ensures the continuity of family relationships in a proper and balanced manner based on solid legal grounds.

Inheritance Division Services in Saudi Arabia

Dr. Fahad Alrefaei & Partners Consulting & Law Firm provides vast provides a vast group of the legal services for dividing inheritance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which includes the solutions that help individuals in dividing their inheritance according to Islamic Sharia Law and the local laws. These services include as following:

• Identifying the legitimate heirs
• Evaluating the inheritance value
• Preparing the inheritance documents and listing heirs
• Negotiating with heirs and settling disputes
• Representing before courts
• Conducting the sales and liquidation procedures

For Inheritance Division services in Saudi Arabia, please contact Dr. Fahad Alrefaei & Partners Consulting & Law Firm at 920012753 or via [email protected]
We are pleased to assist you.