Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) Nigeria

An Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) in Nigeria records how an individual's assets are to pass to named beneficiaries once it takes effect on death. It directs the distribution of the testator's estate to named beneficiaries upon death.

The legal basis for the Wasiyyah in northern Nigeria is the Sharia Courts Law of each state — the same legislation that vests Upper Sharia Courts with jurisdiction over Muslim personal law including succession. In the twelve Sharia states (Kano, Katsina, Zamfara, Kebbi, Sokoto, Niger, Kaduna, Jigawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, and Yobe), the Upper Sharia Court grants probate to the wasi (executor) named in the Wasiyyah and supervises the estate administration. The Court of Appeal of Nigeria in its Sharia jurisdiction handles appeals from the Sharia Courts of Appeal of each state.

A Nigerian Muslim may also execute a Wasiyyah alongside a civil Will under the Wills Law of the relevant state — for example, the Wills Law (Cap W2, Laws of Lagos State 2015) — to confirm that civil courts can administer assets located in states where Sharia courts have no jurisdiction. Assets in southern states including Lagos, Ogun, Rivers, and Anambra are administered by the common law probate court even for Muslims, unless the court is satisfied that the parties have submitted to Islamic personal law.

The Wasiyyah should appoint a wasi (executor) who must be a Muslim of good character (adl) under Maliki requirements. The wasi is responsible for paying debts, discharging the testator's outstanding religious obligations (including zakat and unfulfilled hajj), executing the bequests, and distributing the estate residue according to Faraid rules. Corporate entities may not serve as wasi under classical Maliki law, though some northern state Sharia courts have accepted trust companies as co-administrators in complex commercial estates.

The legal framework governing the Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) in Nigeria draws on several key statutes and judicial authorities. Section 1 of the Wills Act 1837 (received English law, applicable in southern Nigeria) governs civil wills, while the Wasiyyah is governed by the Sharia Courts Law of each of the twelve northern Sharia states. Section 22 of the Land Use Act 1978 requires governor's consent before any land right held in a deceased's estate is transferred to heirs, including through Wasiyyah directions. Section 214 of CAMA 2020 governs transfer of company shares by the wasi (executor) following the Upper Sharia Court grant of administration. Section 1 of the Capital Gains Tax Act (Cap C1, LFN 2004) administered by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) may impose Capital Gains Tax on estate asset disposals during administration. The Sharia Courts (Administration of Justice and Certain Consequential Changes) Law of each northern state grants the Upper Sharia Court jurisdiction to probate the Wasiyyah, supervise the wasi, and confirm the Faraid distribution. The Court of Appeal of Nigeria confirmed Sharia Court of Appeal jurisdiction in Magaji v Matari [2000] 8 NWLR (Pt 670) 722. The Kano State Ministry of Lands, the Kaduna Geographic Information Service (KADGIS), the Sokoto State Lands Bureau, and equivalent northern state land authorities require a Sharia court letter of administration before transferring land title to heirs. The National Population Commission (NPC) registers deaths under the Births, Deaths and Marriages (Registration) Act (Cap B9, LFN 2004). The Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) 2019 administered by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) governs personal data of heirs and beneficiaries. Testators executing an Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) in Nigeria should engage a qualified Maliki Islamic scholar and confirm current Sharia court procedures in the relevant northern state.

An Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) is needed in Nigeria whenever a Muslim wishes to direct charitable bequests, appoint an executor, and provide guidance on the distribution of the estate according to Islamic law.

An Islamic Will is required when a Muslim business owner in Kano, Kaduna, or Abuja wishes to make a charitable bequest (sadaqah jariyah) to a mosque, Islamic school, or charitable foundation — the bequest must be recorded in a Wasiyyah and may not exceed one-third of the net estate under Maliki rules.

An Islamic Will is needed when a Muslim has assets in multiple states — for example, land in Kano State and a bank account with a Lagos-based bank — and wishes to appoint both a wasi (for Sharia court purposes) and a civil executor (for common law probate in Lagos) to administer the respective assets.

An Islamic Will is required when a Muslim parent wishes to appoint a guardian (wali al-awlad) for minor children in the event of both parents' death — the Wasiyyah provides the formal mechanism for such appointment, which the Upper Sharia Court will honour in custody proceedings.

An Islamic Will is needed when a Muslim man wishes to confirm that property he has settled on his wife as mahr is clearly identified as her exclusive property and not included in the estate subject to Faraid distribution — the Wasiyyah records the distinction between the wife's separate property and the matrimonial estate.

An Islamic Will is used when a successful Nigerian Muslim professional or entrepreneur wishes to record their wishes regarding funeral arrangements according to Islamic rites, the appointment of a trustworthy wasi, and the sequence in which debts, religious obligations, and bequests should be discharged from the estate.

Muslim testators in Nigeria should prepare an Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) proactively during their lifetime, while of sound mind and full legal capacity, rather than relying on intestate Faraid distribution without expressed testamentary intentions. The Upper Sharia Court of Kano State, the Upper Sharia Court of Katsina State, the Upper Sharia Court of Sokoto State, and equivalent courts in the other nine northern Sharia states — Zamfara, Kebbi, Niger, Kaduna, Jigawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, and Yobe — accept Wasiyyah documents as binding testamentary instruments. Section 4 of the Stamp Duties Act (Cap S8, LFN 2004) applies to estate instruments; stamping by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) ensures admissibility as evidence before Nigerian courts. Where the testator holds pension entitlements administered by a Pension Fund Administrator (PFA) regulated by the National Pension Commission (PenCom) under the Pension Reform Act 2014, pension death benefits are distributed to nominated beneficiaries separately from the Faraid estate and are not subject to the one-third Wasiyyah limitation. The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) requires a Sharia court letter of administration to transfer registered company shares under Section 214 of CAMA 2020. Muslim testators with assets in both northern and southern states should consider executing both a Wasiyyah and a civil Will under the Wills Law of the relevant southern state — such as the Wills Law (Cap W2, Laws of Lagos State 2015) — to cover assets in all jurisdictions.

A valid Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) for Nigeria must contain the following essential elements under Maliki jurisprudence and Sharia court requirements.

Testator's Declaration: Full name, address, National Identification Number (NIN) from the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), state of domicile, and a declaration that the testator is a Muslim of sound mind (aql), not under duress, and making the Wasiyyah voluntarily. An opening declaration of faith (shahada) is customary in northern Nigerian Wasiyyah documents. The testator must be an adult — consistent with the Child Rights Act 2003 minimum age of 18 — and of full legal capacity under Nigerian common law.

Wasi (Executor) Appointment: Full name, address, and relationship of the appointed wasi. The wasi must be a trustworthy adult Muslim male or female — Maliki law permits female executors — capable of performing estate administration duties. An alternate wasi should be named in case the primary wasi is unable or unwilling to act. Where the estate includes company shares registered at the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) under CAMA 2020, or real property requiring Land Use Act 1978 Section 22 governor's consent, a co-wasi with legal or financial expertise is advisable.

Guardian for Minor Children: If the testator has minor children, the Wasiyyah should name a guardian (wasi al-awlad) for the children's persons and a separate trustee for the children's inherited property, consistent with the guardianship framework under the Guardianship of Children Act (Cap G4, LFN 2004) and the Child Rights Act 2003.

Religious Obligations Discharge: A direction to the wasi to discharge outstanding religious obligations from the estate before distribution — specifically, unfulfilled zakat obligations (to qualified recipients in accordance with Maliki rules), outstanding fasting compensation (fidyah), and any unfulfilled hajj obligation to be performed by proxy (hajj al-badal). These obligations take priority over bequests and Faraid distribution under Surah An-Nisa 4:11.

Debt Instructions: A direction to the wasi to identify and pay all verifiable debts from the estate before executing any bequest or Faraid distribution. Debts include bank loans from CBN-licensed financial institutions, outstanding Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) tax liabilities under the Companies Income Tax Act (CITA, Cap C21, LFN 2004) or Personal Income Tax Act (PITA, Cap P8, LFN 2004), and contractual obligations under agreements registered at the CAC or State Land Registry.

Bequests (Wasaya): Each bequest stated as a specific amount in NGN, a fraction of the net estate (not exceeding one-third), or a specific identified asset — with the beneficiary's full name, address, NIN, and relationship to the testator. Common bequest recipients in northern Nigeria include mosques, Quranic schools (makarantun Qur'an), waqf charitable endowments, and non-Muslim family members (who cannot receive Faraid shares but may receive bequests within the one-third limit).

Faraid Reference: A statement that the estate residue after payment of debts, religious obligations, and wasaya bequests shall be distributed among surviving heirs according to Maliki Faraid rules as applied by the Upper Sharia Court of the relevant state — referencing Surah An-Nisa 4:11–12 and 4:176 as the authority for the shares. The wasi should engage a qualified Maliki Islamic scholar (alim) to calculate the shares.

Real Property Instructions: For land held under Certificate of Occupancy or other rights of occupancy in the twelve northern Sharia states, the wasi must obtain governor's consent under Section 22 of the Land Use Act 1978 from the relevant state authority — such as the Kano State Ministry of Lands, the Kaduna Geographic Information Service (KADGIS), or the Sokoto State Lands Bureau — before transferring title to the heirs. The Upper Sharia Court letter of administration is required to initiate the consent application.

Witnesses: Two adult Muslim witnesses (not beneficiaries of any bequest) who attest that the testator signed voluntarily and appeared to be of sound mind. Their full names, addresses, and NINs should be recorded.

Stamp Duty and Tax: The Wasiyyah should be stamped under the Stamp Duties Act (Cap S8, LFN 2004) to be admissible in evidence before Nigerian courts. FIRS administers stamp duty on estate instruments. Capital Gains Tax (CGT) at 10% under the Capital Gains Tax Act (Cap C1, LFN 2004) may apply to gains on estate assets disposed of during administration.

Date and Revocation Clause: The date (DD/MM/YYYY) and a clause expressly revoking all prior Wasiyyah documents.

Data Protection: Personal data of heirs, beneficiaries, and witnesses processed during estate administration must comply with the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation (NDPR) 2019 administered by the Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC) and the Nigerian Data Protection Act 2023 (NDPA).

Forms-legal.com provides this Islamic Will (Wasiyyah) as a starting point for estate planning in northern Nigeria. Testators should engage a qualified Maliki Islamic scholar and a Nigerian estate lawyer to ensure compliance with current Sharia court requirements.