Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(222): "The Sums Wrongly Transferred by (S.S.C) to the Deceased's Account"

Date Added : 21-04-2016

 

Resolution No.(222) By the Board of Iftaa, Research and Islamic Studies:

"The Ruling on the Sums Wrongly Transferred by (S.S.C) to the Deceased's Account" 

Date: 29/Jumada2/1437 AH, corresponding to 7/4/2016 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.

The Board reviewed the letter of the General Director of The Social Security Corporation (S.S.C), on the above date, which reads as follows:

Could your Grace clarify the ruling of Sharia as regards a bank declining from giving back the amounts transferred by the Corporation to the account of one of its beneficiaries after his death because it wasn`t notified about that, and how to divide those amounts among his heirs? It should be noted that the law stipulates ceasing the transfer of a person`s salary from the date of their death, and the Corporation should divide it among his heirs-if there were any - and in retroactive effect from that same date. Is it permissible for the bank to keep those salaries under the pretext that the heirs are entitled to them, or is it permissible for it to deduce the debts, due on the deceased, from those salaries, which aren`t considered the right of the deceased in the first place?

Having deliberated the above question, the Board decided the following: 

The Social Security System is among the public interests drawn up by contemporary laws in order to achieve security and stability for the working class of the Muslim community. Those benefits go under the umbrella of socio-cooperative insurance where contributions are made by the employee, the state and the Corporation. When the he/she becomes eligible to receive the benefits, they are granted to him/her as a donation.

The Corporation has the right to claim back the amounts that it has transferred to the beneficiary after his death because he isn`t entitled to receive them. Juristic principles have established the following: "A clearly wrong conjecture doesn`t count", and the eligibility to receive the above benefits is tied with the beneficiary being alive, if he/she isn`t, they become the right of the Corporation, to be given by it to the eligible recipients , as stipulated by the regulations observed in such situation.

In conclusion, the Corporation has the right to claim the amounts that it had transferred to the beneficiary`s account by mistake in order to dispose of them in line with the regulations of the Social Security. And Allah Knows Best.

 

Chairman of  the Iftaa` Board,

 Abdulkareem Khasawneh/Member

Vice chairman of the Iftaa` Board, Prof. Ahmad Hilayel/Member

Dr. Hayel Abduhafeez/Member

Prof. Abdulnaser Abulbasal/Member

Sheikh Saeid Hijjawi/Member

Dr. Yahia Albotoosh/Member

Prof. Abdullah Alfawaz/Member

Judge Khalid Woraikat

Dr. Mohammad Khair Al-Esa

Dr. Mohammad Alzou`bi

Dr. Mohammad Alkhalayeleh/Member 

 

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

Is Zakah (obligatory charity) due on leased property, and how is it calculated?

Zakah isn`t due on the leased property itself, but on the saved income from that property if it reached Nissab (minimum amount liable for Zakah), and a whole lunar year had lapsed over saving it.

My father has debts and asked me to repay them years ago, and I promised him I would do so upon his death — is it permissible for me to go back on my promise given that I am unable to repay them, especially since he refuses to contribute to repayment on the grounds that the debt has become my responsibility by virtue of my promise?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
The established principle is that a father's debt is to be repaid from his own wealth, if he possesses sufficient means. As for the promise made by the son to repay it on his father's behalf, fulfilling such a promise is strongly recommended, and breaking it is considerably disliked. Shaykh al-Islām Imām al-Nawawī, may Allah have mercy upon him, states: "Fulfilling a promise is emphatically recommended, and breaking it is severely disliked. The evidences for this from the Qurʾān and the Sunnah are well known." [Rawḍat al-Ṭālibīn,Vol. 2/P.278] Shaykh al-Islām Imām Zakariyyā al-Anṣārī, may Allah have mercy upon him, further states: "The reason fulfilling a promise is not obligatory and breaking it is not forbidden is that a promise is in the nature of a gift, and a gift does not become binding except upon receipt." [Asnā al-Maṭālib fī Sharḥ Rawḍ al-Ṭālib,Vol. 2/P.487]
Given that the son does not possess the financial means to fulfil his promise to his father, breaking this promise falls beyond his capacity — and Allah does not burden a soul beyond what it can bear. Since the father himself possesses sufficient wealth to settle his own debt, repayment must be made from his own funds. Should he pass away before doing so, the debt is to be settled from his estate. And Allah the Almighty knows best.

Can a woman leading other women in Tarawih prayer recite aloud?

Yes, a woman leading other women in Tarawih prayer is allowed to recite aloud, as long as no non-mahram (other than unmarriageable kin) men can hear her.

Can someone who begins a voluntary fast break it?

It is preferable for someone who begins an act of worship not to break it.
Allah the Exalted has said {what means}: "and let not your [good] deeds come to nought!" [Muhammad/33].
However, if a person starts a voluntary fast (nafl) and needs to break it, they are going against what is preferable, but there is no sin upon them.