The present article considers the evolution of the institution of waqf among the Kazan Tatars in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Basing on an analysis of different sources and secondary literature, the author tries to point out the fallacy of some approaches claiming that the institution of waqf had legal status for the Kazan Tatars. On the contrary, an attempt is made to demonstrate that the interior policy of the Russian authorities aimed to oust the rules of Muslim law from the legal framework. Numerous attempts on the part of the Kazan Tatars to restore the institution of waqf proved unsuccessful owing to the resistance of the Russian authorities.