What you owe Allah: zakat, khums, Hajj, missed prayers and fasts in your will
Debts to Allah are among the most important things to write down — only you know them. Here is how each is usually settled, and where the schools differ.
Last reviewed: · اقرأ هذا الدليل بالعربية
Why write them down
Your family cannot know how many fasts you missed or whether last year's zakat was paid. Writing it down, with how you want it settled, lets your executor discharge it — and protects the heirs from paying twice or not at all.
Zakat and khums
Zakat: the Shafiʿi, Hanbali and Maliki schools treat unpaid zakat as a debt paid from the estate before inheritance. The Hanafi school holds it is paid only if you ask for it in your will, and then from the one-third.
Khums (Shia): khums you owe is a debt paid from the estate before inheritance, by your marjaʿ's rulings.
An obligatory Hajj not yet performed
If Hajj was obligatory on you and you did not perform it, the Shafiʿi and Hanbali schools — and Shia rulings — have it paid for from the estate, by sending someone in your place. The Hanafi and Maliki schools have it done only if you request it in your will, from the one-third.
Missed prayers and fasts
Shia: the eldest son is generally responsible for making up his father's missed prayers and fasts, and you may ask in your will that someone be hired to perform them from your one-third.
Sunni: prayers are not prayed on another's behalf. The Hanafi and Maliki schools give a fidya (feeding the poor) for missed fasts — and for Hanafis, missed prayers too — only if you request it in your will, from the one-third. The Shafiʿi and Hanbali schools settle missed Ramadan fasts by feeding the poor from the estate even without a request, and some Shafiʿi scholars also allow a relative to fast for you. Ask your scholar what applies to you.
Kaffara and vows
Write down any expiation (kaffara) you owe — for a broken oath or a fast broken deliberately — and any vow (nadhr) you have not fulfilled, so your executor can settle it.
How to write it
For each item, write what is owed, roughly how much or how many, and how you want it settled. Our will builder has a section for each, set by your school — Sunni with your madhhab, or Shia with your marjaʿ.
Record zakat, khums, Hajj, missed prayers and fasts in your wasiyya (will), set by your school.
Start my wasiyya (will)Questions people ask
Is unpaid zakat taken before the heirs' shares?
In the Shafiʿi, Hanbali and Maliki schools and in Shia rulings, yes — it is a debt. In the Hanafi school, only if you asked for it in your will, and from the one-third.
Can my children make up my missed prayers?
In Shia rulings the eldest son generally must, and others may be hired. In Sunni schools prayers are not made up by others; Hanafis allow a fidya for them if requested in the will, and missed fasts are settled by fidya in all four schools (with conditions that differ).
What if I don't know exactly how much I owe?
Write your best estimate and ask your executor to pay with caution. Scholars generally advise erring on the side of paying more.
This guide explains general rulings by school and general US practice. It is not a fatwa and not legal advice. For your own situation, ask your scholar or marjaʿ, and a licensed attorney in your state.