---
title: "What is Shariah supervisory board? | IslamicOpenFinance™"
description: "An independent panel of Shariah scholars that approves an institution's products and oversees its Shariah compliance."
url: https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-board/
lang: en-GB
source: "IslamicOpenFinance"
---

[Glossary](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/) / [Shariah governance](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/#governance)

Shariah governance

# Shariah supervisory board

An independent panel of Shariah scholars that approves an institution's products and oversees its Shariah compliance.

A Shariah supervisory board, often simply called the Shariah board, is an independent body set up or engaged by an institution offering Islamic financial services to supervise its Shariah compliance and governance system, as IFSB-31 defines it. Its members issue Shariah pronouncements on products and transactions and oversee review and audit of compliance. Regulators set rules on its appointment, composition and independence, and AAOIFI has governance standards on the board's appointment, functions and reporting.

## Sources

- [IFSB-31 Guiding Principles for Effective Supervision of Shariah Governance, 2025: Definitions, Shariah board](https://www.ifsb.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/IFSB-31-Guiding-Principles-for-Effective-Supervision-of-Shariah-Governance.pdf)

This entry explains a term; it is not a Shariah ruling. Approving a product is for each institution's own Shariah board and regulator.

## Related terms

[**Fatwa** A juristic opinion on a Shariah question; in finance, usually a Shariah board's ruling on a product or transaction.](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/fatwa/) [**Shariah governance system** The institutional arrangements through which an institution ensures independent oversight of its Shariah compliance.](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-governance-system/) [**Central Shariah board** A national or regulator-level Shariah authority whose rulings set or harmonise Shariah positions across a jurisdiction.](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/central-shariah-board/) [**Shariah review** A regular compliance function that assesses whether an institution's operations follow Shariah requirements.](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-review/) [**Shariah audit** An independent assessment of internal controls, risk management and overall Shariah compliance, usually by internal audit.](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-audit/)

**Shariah governance**

1. [Fatwa](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/fatwa/)
2. [Shariah governance system](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-governance-system/)
3. [Shariah review](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-review/)
4. [Shariah audit](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-audit/)
5. [Shariah non-compliance risk](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-non-compliance-risk/)
6. [Purification of income](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/purification/)
7. [Central Shariah board](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/central-shariah-board/)
8. [Shariah compliance function](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/shariah-compliance-function/)

[All 221 terms](https://islamicopenfinance.com/glossary/)