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Fatwa CenterInheritance of wife, four sons and four daughters
Question
Assalaamu ‘Alaykum; Please calculate the inheritance according to the following information ۞-Does the deceased have male relatives who are entitled to inherit: (A son) Number 4 ۞-Does the deceased have female relatives who are entitled to inherit : (A daughter) Number 4 (A wife) Number 1 ۞- Additional information : the deacesed first wife died 11 years ago,all the childrens are hers,he remaried but has no childrens with the second,they just received a good amount of money from the governement for the funeral,is this money for her only or for her and his childrens to share,also he had a flat,one of his daughter wants to sell it and devide the money,is that allowed ?his second wife is receiving his pensions.
Answer
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 
is His slave and Messenger.
If the deceased did not leave any other heirs except those mentioned in the question, then his wife gets one-eighth of the inheritance as her legal share due to the existence of the children of the deceased; Allaah Says (what means): {But if you leave a child, then for them [i.e. the wives] is an eighth of what you leave, after any bequest you [may have] made or debt.}[Quran 4:12]
The remainder should be divided amongst the sons and daughters by Ta’seeb (by virtue of having a paternal relation with the deceased and not having an allotted share, so they get what is left after the allotted shares have been distributed); the male twice the share of the female as Allaah Says (what means): {Allaah instructs you concerning your children [i.e. their portions of inheritance]: for the male, what is equal to the share of two females.}[Quran 4:11]
Therefore, the inheritance should be divided into 96 shares, the wife gets one-eighth, which is 12 shares, each son gets 14 shares and each daughter gets 7 shares.
As regards the money that government had paid to be spent on the funeral, then if the government paid it only to cover the funeral expenses, and not to be possessed by the heirs, then it should be spent on the funeral and if any amount remains of it, it should be given back to the government because it is government’s money and you are only deputized to carry out the funeral on behalf of the government, so if something remains of that money, it should be given back to it.
However, if the government paid the money to be possessed by the heirs, then this money is for whomever the authority that gave the money to. This can be solved by asking the authority that gave you the money.
As regards the flat which one of the deceased’s daughters wants to sell, then this flat is the right of all the heirs and no one has the right to take exclusive possession of it at the expense of the other heirs. It can be divided amongst the heirs according to many methods mentioned by the scholars and they are as follows:
1- Each of the heirs would benefit from the flat either by residing in it or renting it for a given period according to their share in the inheritance. When this period finishes, the flat moves to another heir and so forth.
2- The heirs may agree on a method of division in which each one of them would take a part equivalent to his share in the inheritance like a room or something more or something less; this kind of division is also permissible even if an heir took less than he deserves provided he agrees and is adult and sane. But this is not permissible if any of these conditions does not exist in the heir (i.e. consent, being adult and being sane).
3- In case there is no agreement and it is possible to divide the house in a way that each heir gets his right equitably, then this should be done by casting lots among them so that each share should be determined and each one gets his right according the number of his shares.
4- If any of the above is not possible, then the house should be sold and its price should be divided amongst the heirs, each according to his share in the inheritance. The scholars 
stated that the property that cannot be divided equitably among the heirs to an extent that any of them is harmed, and any of them asks that it be sold, then it should be sold and the other heirs would be obliged to sell.
As regards the government allowance, and whether it is for all the heirs or for the wife only, then we have already answered this question in Fatwa 118722, so please refer to it.
Allaah Knows best.
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