Who Are the Legal Heirs under UAE Law? Legal Guide

Who Are the Legal Heirs under UAE Law? The answer depends on the applicable law, religion, and surviving family.

Legal heirs usually include a spouse, children, and parents. Muslim and non-Muslim estates follow different distribution rules.

Who Are the Legal Heirs under UAE Law for Muslim and Non-Muslim Estates?

Muslim inheritance under the 2024 law

Under Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024, Muslim inheritance follows strict Islamic rules based on family ties. The law divides legal heirs into fixed-share inheritors, residuary heirs, and distant kindred.

Your exact share depends on which relatives are alive when the deceased passes away.

Fixed-share heirs (Ashaab Al-Furoud)

Fixed-share heirs receive a specific mathematical fraction of the estate, such as one-half, one-quarter, or one-eighth. Articles 209 and 210 list the relatives who qualify for these fixed shares:

These relatives do not all inherit at the same time. The law also allows some categories to overlap.

For example, under Article 213, a father can receive his fixed share and also claim the remainder of the estate in specific circumstances.

Residuary heirs (Al-Asabah)

Residuary heirs take whatever remains of the estate after the fixed shares are paid. Under Article 225, the law divides these heirs into three distinct groups:

If the fixed shares use up the entire estate, the residuary heirs receive nothing.

Distant kindred and exclusion

If there are no fixed-share or residuary heirs, the distant kindred (Dhawi al-Arham) can inherit under Articles 234 to 236. They can also inherit alongside a surviving spouse if no other heirs exist.

The law also applies strict rules for exclusion (Hajb) under Article 223. This means a closer relative can completely or partially block another relative from inheriting.

However, under Article 224, a person blocked by a severe legal impediment, such as murder, cannot exclude other heirs.

Non Muslim inheritance under the civil framework

Under Decree-Law No. 41 of 2022, non-Muslims in the UAE can choose exactly who inherits their assets by registering a civil will. If you do not have a will, the civil law divides your estate equally among your closest family members without treating males and females differently.

Inheritance with a registered will

Article 11 of the law allows you to leave your UAE assets to any chosen beneficiaries. You can select anyone to inherit your estate, but your will must meet the validity rules set out in the executive regulations.

For related guidance, see registering a will in Dubai.

Inheritance without a will

If you pass away without a registered will, Article 11 sets a strict legal formula to distribute your assets. The exact shares depend on which family members survive you:

• Spouse and children: Half of the estate goes to the surviving spouse. The other half is split equally among the children.
• No children: The law sets specific rules to divide the estate among surviving parents and siblings based on exactly who is alive.

When dividing the half share among the children, the law mandates an equal split between males and females.

Requesting a different inheritance law

The law offers a special exception for foreign citizens. Under Article 11(3), any heir of a foreign deceased person can ask the court to apply a different inheritance law.

They can request to distribute the estate using the rules found in the Civil Transactions Law. However, an heir can only make this request if the deceased person did not leave a registered will stating otherwise.

For related guidance, see UAE inheritance law for expats.

How surviving relatives affect Muslim inheritance

Your exact family structure determines how much of the estate each person receives. Under UAE law, a closer relative can completely block a more distant one from getting any share.

For example, a surviving father will completely block a brother from inheriting.

How descendants affect a spouse’s share

The prescribed share for a husband or wife changes depending on whether the deceased leaves an inheriting descendant. Article 207 strictly defines who qualifies as a descendant, meaning this rule does not cover every grandchild.

Under Articles 211 and 212, the surviving spouse receives these specific shares:

If the deceased leaves more than one wife, they must equally share the prescribed wife’s portion. These figures represent the standard fixed shares, but they remain subject to other applicable distribution rules.

Losing the right to inherit

The law sets strict rules that can completely strip a person of their inheritance. Under Article 203, a person loses their right to inherit if they intentionally kill the deceased.

For this legal penalty to apply, the perpetrator must be a sane adult who committed the killing without a lawful justification or excuse.

How do wills affect legal heirs?

A legal heir inherits by law, while a beneficiary gets a share because you named them in a will. The rules depend on the applicable law.

People covered by the 2022 civil law can leave their UAE assets to chosen beneficiaries, subject to its requirements. Under Article 173 of the 2024 law, the general limit is one-third after funeral expenses and debts.

Article 184 allows bequests to heirs in specified circumstances, including approval by the other adult heirs or an overriding interest recognized by the court. Article 193 provides exceptions to the one-third limit, including approval of the excess by heirs.

What if a child died before the deceased

Under Article 179 of the 2024 law, eligible descendants of a son or daughter may receive a mandatory bequest. This applies where that son or daughter died before or together with the grandparent.

The calculation starts with what their deceased parent would have inherited. Eligible descendants receive their shares of that amount, within a combined limit of one-third of the estate.

Article 179 also sets branch priority and gives a male twice a female’s share within this entitlement.

The descendants must not already inherit from the grandparent. Prior gifts or bequests may satisfy the entitlement, or require only a top-up.

The mandatory bequest takes priority over voluntary bequests within the one-third limit.

For related guidance, see protecting children’s inheritance in the UAE.

Leaving the entire estate through a civil will

A non-Muslim can leave their entire estate to any person using a registered will. This right is guaranteed under Article 11 of Decree-Law No. 41 of 2022.

Daughters and the inheritance rights of siblings

Daughters, female descendants, do not completely block siblings from inheritance in all cases. Depriving siblings of inheritance by a descendant requires the absence of a male descendant under Articles 219 and 220.

The presence of a daughter does not stop a male sibling from inheriting the remainder of the estate as a residuary.

Article 228 explicitly states that a full sister or paternal sister becomes a residuary with others when a daughter or son’s daughter exists. She takes the remainder after the fixed-share heirs.

She is treated like a brother in receiving the remainder and blocking other residuaries. This confirms legally that daughters do not completely and inevitably block siblings from inheritance.

Payments before distributing the estate

Requests to apply foreign inheritance law

An heir can ask the court to apply the deceased’s home country law instead. This is allowed under Article 11 of the 2022 law, unless a registered will says otherwise.