Article 12 of the Saudi Minors' Property Guardianship Law
المادة 12 من نظام الولاية على أموال القاصرين
The article allows the supervisor, where a waqf is dilapidated or has no income and there is nothing to restore it with, to permit someone to restore it at his own expense by building or planting for a known term and a set rent.
Official text (Arabic)
This article has not been amended since the law was issued.
يجوز للناظر إذا خرب الوقف أو تعذرت عودته لإنتاج غلة أو كان أرضا لا غلة لها ولا يوجد ما يعمر به من ريع الوقف أن يأذن لمن يعمره من ماله ببناء أو غرس أو نحوهما لمدة معلومة وبأجر معين، على أن يكون البناء أو الغرس ملكا للباني أو الغارس يصح له التصرف فيه تصرف الملاك ويورث عنه وينتهي حق من يعمر الوقف بحلول الأجل المعين له. ويجوز إذا تحققت غبطة الوقف أن يعوض المعمر عما بناه أو غرسه بقيمة المثل عند حلول الأجل المعين له إذا اشترط ذلك.
This is the official Arabic wording, the only legally binding version. We do not translate the law itself; the explanation below is ours. Official source: Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers
Article 12 explained in plain English
This article addresses the problem of an idle waqf that produces no income and has nothing available to repair it, and it allows a practical solution: a person restores it at his own expense.
When is this permitted? The supervisor (nazir) may do so if the following is met:
- The waqf has become dilapidated, or cannot be brought back to producing income, or is land with no income.
- And there is nothing from the waqf's revenue with which to restore it.
How is it done? The supervisor permits someone who will restore it at his own expense to build, plant or the like, for a known term and a set rent.
Rights of the person who restores it:
- The building or planting is owned by the builder or planter, who may dispose of it as an owner would, and it passes by inheritance from him.
- His right to restore the waqf ends when the set term expires.
- Where the waqf's evident benefit is secured, the person who restored it may be compensated for what he built or planted at the fair value when the term expires, if that was stipulated.
Paragraph 2 of Article 13 requires that permission to restore a waqf be given only after the approval of the competent court, so the supervisor's permission alone is not enough.
Anyone considering an agreement to restore waqf land should consult a lawyer who specializes in waqf cases before contracting.
Practical example
A vacant waqf plot in Taif produces nothing, and the waqf has no revenue sufficient to build on it. The supervisor, with the court's approval, permits Saad to build shops on it at his own expense for twenty years at a set annual rent payable to the waqf. The shops belong to Saad during the term and pass to his heirs, his right ends when the term ends, and he is compensated at the fair value if that was stipulated and the waqf's benefit is secured.
Translated from our Arabic explanation with machine assistance. For guidance only; it does not replace advice from a lawyer on your situation.
How we write and review contentFamily & Personal Status Law lawyers: ask a specialist about your case
Describe your situation briefly and we'll suggest a lawyer who specialises in this law
Family & Personal Status Law lawyers
Lawyers who handle this kind of case
Dr. Ali Al-Rubaie Law Office and Ittihad Al-Asr Legal Company
Dr. Ali Al-Masradi Law Firm
Frequently asked questions about Article 12 of the Saudi Minors' Property Guardianship Law
Can one build on waqf land?
Where a waqf is dilapidated or has no income and no revenue to restore it, the supervisor may permit someone to restore it at his own expense by building or planting for a known term and a set rent, with the approval of the competent court under Article 13.
Who owns a building put up on waqf land?
It belongs to the builder, who may dispose of it as an owner would and whose heirs inherit it. His right ends when the set term expires.
Is the person who built on the waqf compensated when the term ends?
He may be compensated at the fair value when the term expires if that was stipulated and the waqf's benefit is secured.
More articles on Administering Family Endowments
- Article 10
The article gives the Authority administration of private endowments with no administrator and supervision of appointed administrators, requires periodic accounts from them, and lets it refer a harmful administrator to the court.
تختص الهيئة بالنظارة على جميع الأوقاف الأهلية التي لا ناظر عليها وكذلك المشتركة فيما يختص بالوقف الأهلي. ولها حق الإشراف على النظار المعينين إذا عهدت إليها المح
- Article 11
The article allows the Authority to request partition of a waqf, and the competent court to permit it, where the endowed property is an undivided share co-owned with another owner or shared between two or more waqfs.
يجوز للهيئة المطالبة بالقسمة وللمحكمة المختصة الإذن بذلك إذا كان الموقوف حصة شائعة مشتركة بين الواقف ومالك آخر أو أكثر أو مشتركة بين وقفين أو أكثر.
- Article 13
The article limits the cases in which the Authority may exchange a waqf for a similar one, and bars selling, exchanging, restoring or relocating a waqf without the approval of the competent court.
1- لا يجوز للهيئة أن تستبدل بالوقف مثله إلا إذا اشترط الواقف ذلك لنفسه أو لغيره، أو صار الوقف لا ينتفع به كليا، أو صار لا يفي بمؤونته، أو نزعت ملكيته للمنفعة ال
The texts are reproduced from the official website of the Bureau of Experts at the Council of Ministers for reference; where they differ, the officially published Arabic text prevails. This content is not legal advice.