Legal Framework of Shari’ah Corporations in Malaysia: Special Reference to Waqf Corporation

Abstract

In Malaysia, the Islamic commercial institutions were established under respective legislations which contain express term on their status as a body corporate. Examples of these institutions are Islamic banks, zakah institutions, Pilgrimage Board and Islamic insurance (takaful) companies. In 1998, Johor Corporation (JCorp) initiated a corporate waqf entity known as Waqaf An-Nur Corporation Berhad (WANCorp). In 2011, Majlis Agama Islam Wilayah Persekutuan (MAIWP) collaborated with Tabung Haji to develop a Class AWaqf building leased to Bank Islam Malaysia Berhad (BIMB). The developments in waqf involving corporate entities are worth to be analyzed in order to create a new framework of waqf practice. This paper deliberated the attributes of corporations under the Malaysian law and compares them with the principles of Islamic law (Shari'ah). For the purpose of discussion, this paper refers to WANCorp and Awqaf Holdings as examples of waqf corporations in Malaysia.