Can a homosexual or transgender inherit Islamically?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger. 

Homosexuality is not an impediment to inheritance; the scholars did not list it among the impediments to inheritance and there is no sharee'ah evidence to this effect. If it is proven that a person commits this sin, then that does not prevent him from his share in the inheritance. However, it is the right of Allaah over His slaves to implement the prescribed hadd (corporal punishment) in this regard, which is to be executed by the ruler. Such a person should be killed, and his wealth should be divided among his Muslim heirs. Shaykhul-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah wrote:

“It was narrated that the Prophet, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, said, 'Whoever you find engaging in the practices of the people of Loot (Lut), kill the one who does it and the one to whom it is done.' Therefore, the Companions unanimously agreed that whoever engages in homosexual activities should be killed; however, they differed about the manner of killing. Some held that they should be stoned to death, and others maintained that they should be thrown from the highest wall in town, followed by stones thrown at them. Others said that they should be burned. Therefore, the majority of the righteous predecessors and scholars held that homosexuals should be stoned to death, regardless of whether they are married or unmarried, free or slave, or one is free and the other is his slave.”

The same applies to transgenders, there is no sharee'ah evidence indicating that there is a religious impediment to receiving their rightful shares of the inheritance. There were transgenders during the lifetime of the Prophet, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam. The Kuwaiti Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence reads:

“The one who willingly chooses to be a transgender but does not commit the heinous act (i.e. sodomy) is a sinner, but he is not liable for hadd or expiation. His punishment is ta'zeer (discretionary punishment) and should be proportional and commensurate with the gravity of the offense committed and the condition of the offender. It was reported that the Prophet, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, exiled the transgenders as a discretionary punishment and that they were driven out of Madeenah. He, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, said, 'Get them out of your homes.' The Companions did the same after the death of the Prophet, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam.”

Nevertheless, there is no evidence proving that the transgenders were denied their shares in inheritance.

For further information, please refer to fatwa 85575.

Allaah knows best.