All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

It is absolutely forbidden for a Muslim to leave Islam by word, deed, or belief. There is nothing in this world greater than faith in Allah the Almighty and His Messenger, our master Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him. Allah The Exalted Says (What means): "…. And if any of you Turn back from their faith and die in unbelief, their works will bear no fruit in this life and in the Hereafter; they will be companions of the Fire and will abide therein." [Al-Baqarah/217]. Thus, it is forbidden to apostatize from Islam in order to attain any of the pleasures of this world. Whoever does so has committed a grave crime, whether he intended to leave Islam or not, but rather did so to gain worldly benefits. Allah The Exalted Says (What means): "If thou dost question them, they declare (with emphasis): "We were only talking idly and in play." Say: "Was it at God, and His Signs, and His Apostle, that ye were mocking?" Make ye no excuses: ye have rejected Faith after ye had accepted it. If We pardon some of you, We will punish others amongst you, for that they are in sin." [At-Tawbah/65-66].

In conclusion, it is forbidden for a Muslim to leave the religion of Islam for the sake of any worldly benefit, whether he intends to leave Islam by doing so or not. Apostasy from Islam – may Allah Protect us – by word, deed, or belief is considered one of the most heinous sins and the most severe in its ruling.

However, we would like to point out that this fatwa does not entail ruling that a specific individual is an apostate. This is because ruling that one of the Muslims is an apostate can only occur after the fulfillment of the necessary conditions and the absence of any impediments, and this is a task entrusted to the judiciary, not to individuals. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.