Scenario: How a R30M Estate Could Be Cleaned and Restructured for Shariah Compliance and Tax Efficiency
“How a R30M Estate Could Be Cleaned and Restructured for Shariah Compliance and Tax Efficiency" by Mogamat Ali Salie
Introduction
Across South Africa, many high-net-worth Muslim families carry a quiet concern.
They have built significant wealth, sometimes over multiple generations. Yet they worry that parts of their estate may not be aligned with their Islamic principles.
This worry often grows into something heavier. Uncertainty about zakah, fears of non-compliant investments, questions about estate duty, and a lack of clarity about how different assets fit together.
At MuslimFin Family Office, we often explore scenarios like the one below. It illustrates how a fragmented estate can be cleaned, aligned, and made more tax-efficient even before the next generation inherits it.
This is not a client case; it is a realistic scenario based on what many HNW families face.
A Scenario: The R30M Estate That Looked Fine — Until It Was Mapped Properly
A Cape Town family has accumulated a R30M estate over 25 years.
On paper, everything looked balanced; there were multiple assets: retirement funds, properties, offshore exposure, and a few investment portfolios.
But beneath the surface, three major issues existed:
1. Nearly half the portfolio sat in non-compliant instruments.
This happened gradually; over years of advice from different advisors who never coordinated with one another.
2. Several assets were in outdated or tax-inefficient wrappers.
This created unnecessary estate duty leakage and potential CGT events.
3. The family had no unified blueprint tying their structure to Shariah principles.
This is the most common source of anxiety for wealthy Muslim families.
The Cleanup: What a Family Office Framework Would Do
Below is the exact type of structured intervention a Family Office — especially a Shariah-compliant one — would recommend.
1. Diagnostic Audit
We examine every policy, trust, investment, property, and company interest.
The goal is to map the entire estate into a single dashboard.
This is the moment families experience their first breakthrough; they finally “see it all at once.”
2. Phased Removal of Non-Compliant Holdings
Where possible, non-compliant instruments are exited immediately.
Where exits would trigger tax, we stagger transitions or introduce compliant hedges to neutralise exposure.
3. Rebuilding the Estate Structure
We reconstruct the estate using vehicles and frameworks that align with:
Shariah principles
South African tax and estate law
Multi-generational legacy planning
Liquidity needs for the heirs
This is where fragmentation becomes strategy.
4. Estate Duty and Zakah Optimisation
Compliance alone is not enough.
The structure must also minimise unnecessary tax leakage and provide clarity to the family regarding annual zakah obligations.
The Outcome: Peace of Mind and a Clear Path Forward
When the estate is mapped “before and after,” the transformation is striking.
Before:
• 50% non compliant
• Multiple outdated wrappers
• Estate duty inefficiencies
• Confusion about zakah
• No clear succession strategy
After:
• Majority compliant
• Wrappers aligned with tax efficiency
• Reduced leakage
• Clear annual zakah roadmap
• Blueprint for multi-generational succession
This is what a Family Office does: not only advising but coordinating, structuring, purifying, and future-proofing.
And as the first Shariah-compliant Family Office in South Africa, MuslimFin is built to do this with a depth of understanding no traditional firm can replicate.
If your estate feels scattered or uncertain, this scenario may feel familiar
Many families only realise the scale of the problem when they see the visual breakdown.
If you would like to explore what a cleanup might look like — confidentially and without obligation — you can reach out.
If this scenario reflects your own concerns about estate alignment, we invite you to explore our confidential Estate Alignment Framework.
Simply message me with the word: "CLEANUP"
