15.3 Inheritance Laws: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Turkey
In this example, we will compare inheritance laws across five Muslim-majority countries.
Qur’an 4:11 states: “…for the male is the share of two females…”
This verse is part of a larger passage that lays out specific inheritance shares for different family members.
Thus, Sharia includes a 2:1 inheritance rule for men and women (application of this law depends on a specific family structure).
The five countries we will compare are:
- Saudi Arabia → Full Sharia
- Iran → State-Mandated Sharia
- Pakistan → Hybrid (Common Law + Sharia)
- Indonesia → Mostly Secular
- Turkey → Fully Secular
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- Saudi Arabia → It is written into state law that men inherit twice the share of women.
- Iran → Under Civil Code, sons inherit exactly twice as much as daughters.
- Pakistan → Courts apply the 2:1 rule for Muslims, but the Federal Shariat Court has ruled that denying women inheritance is “un-Islamic.”
- Indonesia → Muslims typically follow the Islamic Compilation of Law (2:1 rule), but they can also opt for “Customary Law” or the Civil Code which treats genders equally.
- Turkey → Inheritance is governed by the Turkish Civil Code, which grants sons, daughters, and spouses equal shares regardless of religion.
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Pakistan’s government is considered a hybrid legal system because the system is British Common Law, but any law deemed “repugnant to Islam” by the Shariat Court can be struck down.
For example, local customs were being used in rural areas of Pakistan to pressure women into waiving their inheritance entirely so the land would stay with the men. The Federal Shariat Court stepped in to say that while the 2:1 ratio is Islamic, giving a woman zero is a violation of Islam.
In this case, the court used Sharia power to override cultural traditions by ruling that the state must proactively ensure women actually receive their legal share, because denying them their portion is a sin and a crime.
Over the next several sections will look more closely at the governments in each of these five countries: Saudi Arabia, Iran, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Turkey. Up first, in section 15.4, is Saudi Arabia.