Heir Determination in Saudi Arabia: Conditions of Inheritance and How the Document Is Issued
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The heir determination document sets out who the deceased's heirs are and their shares, and the later steps in the estate, from the inventory to division, are built on it. This guide covers the legal framework for heir determination, how to request it online, and the matters the court hears.
What the Heir Determination Document Is
The Ministry of Justice describes its heir determination service as an online service for issuing the heir determination document, which contains the details of the deceased, the heirs and their shares. The Law of Civil Procedure places proof of death and heir determination within the jurisdiction of the personal status courts (Article 33).
Conditions of and Bars to Inheritance
The Personal Status Law sets three conditions for inheriting: the death of the person inherited from, in fact or by a court judgment; the heir being alive after that death, in fact or by legal presumption; and a ground for inheritance existing with no bar to it (Article 199).
The bars the Law sets out include:
- Killing the person inherited from intentionally and wrongfully, or quasi-intentionally, whether as principal or accomplice, and wrongfully or quasi-intentionally causing or ordering the killing. A person who killed by mistake inherits from the estate but not from the blood money (Article 200).
- A difference of religion, although a will may validly be made in favor of a non-Muslim under the will provisions of the Law (Articles 178 and 202).
The deceased do not inherit from one another where they died at the same time, or where it is not known who died first (Article 203).
Separation between spouses during their lifetime prevents them inheriting from each other, except in two cases: a revocable divorce while the wife is still in her waiting period, and a divorce by the husband during his final illness without the wife asking for it, in which case she inherits from him unless she remarried before his death (Article 201).
Cases That Need Particular Care
- An unborn child: the larger of the possible shares is reserved for the unborn child, based on an approved medical report stating the number of foetuses, and the other heirs receive the lesser of their possible shares; once the child is born and it is clear whether it survived, its sex and number, the rest of the estate is distributed by share (Article 240).
- A missing person: a missing heir's share is reserved on the assumption that they are alive. If they reappear alive they take it, and if they are judged to have died before the person they would inherit from, the share goes back to the heirs entitled to it at the time of the judgment (Article 238).
- Acknowledging an heir: where some legally competent heirs acknowledge another person as sharing in the inheritance, or as excluding one of them, and the rest deny it or are not legally competent, that person's inheritance is established if there is evidence; otherwise the acknowledged person shares in the entitlement of the heir who acknowledged them, if they are an heir (Article 241).
How to Request Heir Determination Online
Where there is a disagreement over whether someone is an heir, or a death or lineage needs to be proved, these are matters for the personal status courts, as the next section explains.
The Ministry of Justice offers the service on the Estates platform, signing in through the National Single Sign-On service (Nafath). The applicant chooses the heir determination service, enters details of the applicant, the deceased, the heirs and the witnesses, then reviews and submits the request.
The conditions published on the service page include:
- Providing the supporting documents the online form requires, such as a copy of the death certificate.
- Providing details of all the heirs and the witnesses.
- A valid power of attorney where the applicant acts for one of the heirs, with a power of attorney issued outside the Kingdom authenticated by the Ministry of Justice.
- Documents issued outside the Kingdom being authenticated by the Ministry of Justice.
Matters the Court Hears
Personal status courts hear proof of death, lineage and heir determination, and the claims that arise from personal status matters (Article 33 of the Law of Civil Procedure). Where there is a disagreement over whether someone is an heir, or a death or lineage on which inheritance depends needs to be proved, these courts hear it.
After Heir Determination
The next stage is the estate inventory. The inventory service on the Estates platform requires an officially documented heir determination document, and the applicant must be one of the heirs. Division of the estate, by agreement or through the court, follows, and the estate division guide covers it.
This is general information based on the cited laws when this page was prepared. It may change, and it is not legal advice on a specific case.
Frequently asked questions
The heir determination document sets out who the deceased's heirs are and their shares, and the later steps in the estate, from the inventory to division, are built on it. The estate inventory comes next, and its service on the Estates platform requires an officially documented heir determination document and an applicant who is one of the heirs. Division of the estate, by agreement or through the court, then follows.
The Ministry of Justice offers heir determination online on the Estates platform: the applicant signs in through the National Single Sign-On service (Nafath), chooses the heir determination service, enters details of the applicant, the deceased, the heirs and the witnesses, then reviews and submits the request. The conditions published on the service page include providing the supporting documents the online form requires, such as a copy of the death certificate, details of all the heirs and the witnesses, and a valid power of attorney where the applicant acts for one of the heirs, with any power of attorney or document issued outside the Kingdom authenticated by the Ministry of Justice. Where there is a disagreement over whether someone is an heir, or a death or lineage needs to be proved, these are matters for the personal status courts (Article 33 of the Law of Civil Procedure).
Yes: the conditions published on the heir determination service page include providing details of all the heirs and the witnesses. On the Estates platform, the applicant enters details of the applicant, the deceased, the heirs and the witnesses, then reviews and submits the request.
The Personal Status Law sets three conditions for inheriting: the death of the person inherited from, in fact or by a court judgment; the heir being alive after that death, in fact or by legal presumption; and a ground for inheritance existing with no bar to it (Article 199). The bars the Law sets out include killing the person inherited from intentionally and wrongfully, or quasi-intentionally (Article 200), and a difference of religion, although a will may validly be made in favor of a non-Muslim under the will provisions of the Law (Articles 178 and 202). The deceased do not inherit from one another where they died at the same time, or where it is not known who died first (Article 203).