Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(133): “Ruling on Subscribing to Social Security”

Date Added : 27-10-2015

 

Resolution No.(133),(11/2009) by the Board of Iftaa`, Research and Islamic Studies:

“Ruling on Subscribing to Social Security”

Date: 1/8/1430 AH, corresponding to 23/7/2009 AD.

 

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of The Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

During its third session held on the above given date, the Board reviewed the ruling of Sharia as regards subscribing to voluntary social security.

After thorough studying and deliberating, the Board decided:
Ruling on subscribing to social security was referred to the Board upon the making of the law pertaining to social security. At that time, the Board considered it permissible based on the following:
1- The Social Security Fund is part of the public treasury and giving money to it is a sort of donation or contribution to enrich that treasury which is beneficial to all Muslims.
2- In Islamic Sharia it is obligatory that the public treasury provides for the poor old citizen who can`t provide for himself. The Board mentioned what Umar (May Allah be pleased with him) said when he saw one of the people of the book begging. He said: “We haven’t been fair to you; we took Jizyah (a kind of tax) from you when you were young and didn`t provide for you when you got old”. Therefore, he ordered that he receives a maintenance from the public treasury.
3- Due to the fact that the public treasury can`t provide for every poor old person, the social security law was made. This means that the Social Security Fund is obligated to provide for every poor old person who subscribed to it when he was young. This subscription makes it lawful for  him (beneficiary) to receive a maintenance from that Fund.
4- When a citizen reaches the age of retirement and is given a salary from that Fund, if he is poor, then he is permitted to spend it on himself, but if he is rich, then he should give it to the needy.
5- The Board ascertains the content of its above resolution which was issued upon legislating the Social Security Law.

As a result, it is permissible to subscribe to voluntary social security within the aforementioned criteria. And Allah Knows Best.
    

 

Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Grand Mufti of Jordan, Dr. Nooh al-Qhodat

Vice Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, 

Dr. Ahmad Hilayel

Sheikh Abdulkareem al-Khasawneh/ Member

Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Khair al-Eesa/ Member

Judge Sari al-Ass`ad/ Member

Dr. Abdurahamn Ibbdah/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Okla/ Member

Dr. Abdunnasir Abulbasal/ Member

 

Decision Number [ Previous | Next ]


Summarized Fatawaa

Is it a condition that one should offer two sacrifices for a male newborn?

It is desirable to offer two sheep for a male newborn, and one for a female newborn. Offering one sheep for the male newborn is also permissible as it observes the Prophet`s Sunnah in this regard.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on the prayer of zawal?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is recommended (sunnah) to pray four rakʿāt — either with a single tasleem or as two separate sets of two rakʿāt — immediately following the sun's decline from its zenith (zawāl). This prayer is distinct from the regular Sunnah prayer of Ẓuhr (sunnat al-ẓuhr al-rātibah), as explicitly stated by the Shāfiʿī jurists.
It is mentioned in Nihāyat al-Muḥtāj: "The prayer of zawāl is offered after the sun's decline — so were one to perform it before that, it would not count. It consists of two or four rakʿāt and is distinct from the Sunnah of Ẓuhr, as is evident from the fact that it is mentioned separately after the regular Sunnah prayers, and it becomes a make-up prayer (qaḍāʾ) if a long period of time passes by customary reckoning... Al-ʿAlqamī stated: 'Scholars refer to this as the Sunnah of Zawāl, and it is distinct from the four rakʿāt that constitute the Sunnah of Ẓuhr.' Our shaykh said: Al-Ḥāfiẓ al-ʿIrāqī stated that among those who explicitly affirmed its recommendation was al-Ghazālī in al-Iḥyāʾ, in the chapter on devotional litanies, noting that there is no tasleem between them — meaning there is no break between each pair of rakʿāt."
The time of the sun's decline (zawāl) marks the very beginning of the time for the Ẓuhr prayer.
And Allah the Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on discharging one's zakāh obligation through the provision of a specific benefit (manfa‘ah) — such as performing a surgical operation for a patient, or providing housing to a tenant, and counting the value of this service as zakāh?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
It is obligatory to pay zakāh from the actual asset (‘ayn al-māl) upon which zakāh is due, except in the case of zakāh on trade goods ('urūḍ at-tijārah), which is paid based on their monetary value. In all cases, zakāh must be given in the form of tamlīk (a full transfer of ownership), based on the words of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic (which mean): "Zakāh expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy, and for those employed to collect [zakāh], and for bringing hearts together [for Islam], and for freeing captives [or slaves], and for those in debt, and for the cause of Allah, and for the [stranded] traveler — an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise" [at-Tawbah/60]. The letter "lām" (لِ) in this verse — as in "lil-fuqarā'" ("for the poor") — indicates possession/ownership (lām al-milk).
It is not permissible to fulfill one's zakāh obligation by providing a benefit or service (manfa‘ah) — such as housing, education, or medical treatment — in place of the zakāh itself. This is because zakāh must be paid as wealth (māl) that is transferred into the ownership of the poor recipient, whereas such services are intangible benefits that are not, in themselves, capable of being formally transferred in ownership (ghayr qābilah lit-tamlīk). And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Is it obligatory to have the intention for each day of fasting, or is one intention sufficient for the whole month?

The intention is obligatory for each day of Ramadan because each day is an independent act of worship separate from the others.
The intention must be made at night before the break of dawn, as the Prophetﷺ said: "Whoever does not intend fasting at night, there is no fast for him." [An-Nasa’i] 
And he also said: "Whoever does not firmly resolve to fast before dawn, there is no fast for him." [At-Tirmidhi, Abu Dawood, and An-Nasa’i]
Whoever wakes up and eats Suhoor while mindful of fasting has made the intention. Likewise, one who firmly intends at any moment during the night to fast the next day has also fulfilled the intention.