Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(221): "The Prize Resulting from Transferring the Maid`s Salary is hers, not her Employer`s"

Date Added : 23-02-2016

Resolution No.(221) (3/2016) by the Board of Iftaa`, Research and Islamic Studies:

"The Prize Resulting from Transferring the Maid`s Salary is hers, not her Employer`s"

Date: 8/Jumada 1/ 1437, corresponding to 17/2/2016 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 second session held on the above date, the Board reviewed a question that read as follows:

I transfer my maid`s salary, to her family, through an exchange office which holds a prize draw on such transfers. Do I have the right to collect the won prize or is it my maid`s, taking into consideration that I pay for the transfer fees?

After deliberating, the Board decided what follows:

The salaries of the above employer`s maid, which he transfers to her family, are a debt on him. Legal scholars define debt as "A rightful obligation due on a person", and this includes any confirmed obligation incurred by a loan, a sale/transaction, an Ijarah (hiring) or else.

The above salaries is a debt, on you, possessed by your maid, in return for her work at your house, and she is permitted to dispose of it as she likes, including appointing you as her proxy with that money. Legal scholars have permitted  authorizing  the person,  on whom one`s debt is due, to dispose of that debt the way they ask him to.

For instance; the proxy in this regard is permissible as stated by scholars; whereas Ashrbini stated: "If he/she authorized their employer to buy them an item in return for their debt, due on him, and he did, then that is permissible according  to the more famous of the two opinions that validate proxy purchase." [Al-Mughni, vol3/pp.236].

In conclusion, the above money is possessed by the maid, and her employer functions as her proxy in transferring it to her family abroad; therefore, the loss or profit incurred by that proxy contract is hers, so the prize is hers as well; because it has resulted from her authorizing him. And Allah Knows Best.

 

Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, The Grand Mufti of Jordan, Sheikh Abdulkareem Alkhasawneh

Vice Chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Prof. Ahmad Hilayel

Dr. Hayel Abdulhafeez/ Member

Prof. Abdulnnasir Abulbasal/ Member

Sheikh Sa`eid Hijjawi/ Member

Dr. Yahia Albotoosh/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Khair Alessa/ Member

Dr. Khalid Alworaikat/ Member

Prof. Abdullah AlFawaaz/ Member

Dr. Mohammad AlKhalayleh/ Member

Dr. Mohammad AlZou`bi/ Member

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on mentioning Allah`s name upon slaughtering an animal?

In the Name of Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon our Master, the Messenger of Allah.
 
It is a Sunnah (prophetic tradition) for the person slaughtering to say: "Bismillah" (In the Name of Allah), though the most complete and perfect phrasing is to say: "Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim" (In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful). This is in accordance with the words of Allah Almighty: "So eat of that [meat] upon which the name of Allah has been mentioned." (Al-An'am/118)
 
However, pronouncing it is not an obligatory requirement (Wajib). If someone omits it—whether deliberately or out of forgetfulness—the meat remains entirely lawful (Halal) to eat, though purposely omitting it is considered disliked (Makruh). And Allah the Almighty Knows Best.

What is the ruling of Islamic Law on one who died owing debts and left no wealth? Is it obligatory upon the heirs to settle these debts?

 

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
The general rule is that if a person dies owing rights to other people, such as debts, these are settled from his estate, if he left any wealth, before the estate is divided. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: “The believer's soul is suspended by his debt until it is settled for him.” Graded ḥasan by al-Tirmidhī. Repayment of debts takes precedence over the heirs’ right to inheritance.
If the deceased left no estate, or left wealth that was insufficient to cover his debts, it is not obligatory for the heirs to pay from their own wealth, but it is recommended for them to do so, because the deceased’s dhimmah (legal liability) remains occupied by the debt. It is reported in some narrations that he remains held in suspension until his debt is paid, and it is not part of filial righteousness for a child to leave his father’s dhimmah burdened with debt.
All of the children may contribute to settling the debt on behalf of their father and cooperate in doing so, even in installments, according to their ability. And Allah Almighty knows best.

What is the ruling on swearing an oath by the Prophet ﷺ, and does such an oath take effect according to Imām Aḥmad ibn Ḥanbal, requiring expiation upon its breach?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Swearing an oath by a created being is disliked (makrūh) in our Shāfiʿī school. Shaykh al-Islām Imām al-Nawawī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "Swearing by a created being is disliked — such as swearing by the Prophet, the Kaʿbah, Jibrīl, the Companions, or the Prophet's family. Al-Shāfiʿī, may Allah have mercy upon him, said: 'I fear that swearing by other than Allah the Almighty may constitute an act of disobedience.' The scholars of the school explained this to mean: that is, something forbidden and sinful — indicating that he had some hesitation in the matter. Al-Imām stated: the established position of the school is that it is categorically not forbidden, but rather disliked. Furthermore, whoever swears by a created being, his oath does not take effect and no expiation (kaffārah) is required if he breaks it." [Rawḍat al-Ṭālibīn wa ʿUmdat al-Muftīn, Vol. 11/P.6]
According to the Ḥanbalī school, however, expiation becomes obligatory upon one who swears by our master the Prophet ﷺ and then breaks his oath. Imām al-Bahūtī al-Ḥanbalī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "No expiation is required for swearing by other than Allah the Almighty, even if the oath is broken — because expiation was made obligatory for swearing by Allah and His attributes, out of reverence for His names, and nothing else is equal to Him in this regard... except in the case of swearing by our Prophet Muḥammad ﷺ, for expiation becomes obligatory when one swears by him and then breaks the oath. This was explicitly stated in the narration of Abū Ṭālib, because he is one of the two conditions of the two testimonies of faith by which a disbeliever becomes a Muslim. Ibn ʿAqīl held the view that swearing by any of the other prophets, peace and blessings be upon them all, carries the same ruling." [Sharḥ Muntahā al-Irādāt, Vol. 3/P.441]. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

Is it permissible for a person to give the Zakah (obligatory charity) to his daughter-in-law?

Yes, it is permissible for a person to give the Zakah to his daughter-in-law if she was poor, and none provided for particularly by whom are obliged to provide for her. And Allah Knows Best.