Short answer
In the Hanafi school, a body is not dug up after burial except for a pressing right, such as the land being taken unlawfully or property left in the grave. Moving a body to another place is not allowed once it is buried. A grave may be reused only when the body has fully returned to dust.
Exhuming a buried Muslim is not permitted except for a right of people, such as land that was usurped, land claimed by pre-emption, or wealth dropped into the grave; even burial in a distant land or without the sunnah facing does not justify it. Once the body has turned to dust, burying another in the same place is allowed.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Also allows exhumation to wash a body buried unwashed, or to turn it toward the qiblah, while it has not decayed.
- Hanbali
- Allows exhumation for a valid benefit, such as washing, correcting the direction, or moving the body to a better place.
Explanation
Two situations raise this question in the West: families who want to move a grave to their home country, and cemeteries that reuse old plots after many decades. The starting point is respect for the dead: the Prophet ﷺ said that breaking a dead person's bone is like breaking it in life.
Exhuming and moving. In the Hanafi school, once the earth is placed, the grave is the person's resting place and is not opened for the family's wishes, even to move the body home. It is opened only when someone else's right demands it, for example if the burial was on land taken without permission, or something of value was buried by mistake. The other schools allow it for more reasons; they cite Jabir, who moved his father's body to a separate grave six months after Uhud.
Reusing old graves. When a body has fully turned to dust, the land may be reused for another burial. If bones are found while digging, they should be gathered with respect and reburied, with a barrier of earth between them and the new body.
- Choose a cemetery that does not reuse Muslim graves while remains are likely, or buy the right of burial for as long as allowed.
- If a council or cemetery plans to reuse old graves, the mosque can ask for the Muslim section to be left, or for any remains to be reburied respectfully.
- Court-ordered exhumation for a criminal case is a matter of necessity; ask a mufti.
Decide the place of burial before it happens; see sending a body home.
Ask a mufti about your own case. This answer explains the general ruling. When the details of your situation matter, as they do here, ask a qualified mufti and give them the full facts. Where to ask a scholar.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Abasa 80:21
ثُمَّ أَمَاتَهُۥ فَأَقْبَرَهُۥ ﴿٢١﴾
Then He causes his death and provides a grave for him.
The grave is the person's resting place.
Sunan Abi Dawud 3207
Graded sahih... كسر عظم الميت ككسره حيا ...
"Breaking a dead person's bone is like breaking it while he is alive."
The remains must not be disturbed or handled roughly.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1351
Sahih... فاستخرجته بعد ستة أشهر ...
"I took him out after six months."
Jabir's report, which the other schools use to allow moving a body for a reason.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya, Kitab al-Salah, chapter on the jana'iz, section on burial. The body is not exhumed after burial except for a right of people.
- Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Salah, Bab Salat al-Janazah, burial. Not moving the body after burial, and reusing a grave once the body has turned to dust.
- al-Majmu' (Nawawi), Kitab al-Jana'iz, exhuming the dead. The Shafi'i reasons for exhumation.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.