Series of Answers by the Eminent Scholar Ata bin Khalil Abu al-Rashtah, Ameer of Hizb ut-Tahrir, to the Questions of the Visitors of his Facebook Page "Fiqhi"
Answer to a Question
To: Ammar Khdhir
Question:
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
A brother put me in a difficult position with a question, and I felt he was right, despite my attempts to explain the situation we live in, but he was not yet convinced.
The question concerns the compensation for work provided in public service within this capitalist system, where it is likely to be Riba (usury/interest) or a part of it—noting that the state granting the public service compensation pays these funds, or part of them, from Riba-based loans from foreign countries or the International Monetary Fund.
Are we, as employees, receiving Riba-based money in exchange for our work in public service or not? If the answer is yes, what is the way to be free from it and live without a job for which we spent our lives studying and working to obtain?
Thank you in advance for your understanding, and may Allah reward you with the best.
Your brother Ammar from Tunisia.
Answer:
Walaikum Assalam wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh,
Regarding the salary an employee receives in public service in exchange for their work, the ruling depends on the nature of the work they perform:
If they are performing a forbidden (haram) job, such as working in intelligence to spy on Muslims, or working in torturing people or the dawah carriers, etc., then their salary is haram because it was earned from a forbidden action.
However, if the work they perform is a permissible (mubah) job—such as working as a teacher, an engineer, a doctor in a government hospital, or similar permissible roles—then their salary is permissible for them. It does not harm them if the entity paying the salary has mixed funds consisting of Riba, other forbidden transactions, and permissible transactions. Receiving a salary from this mixture of halal and haram is permissible for the employee, unless the salary is specifically taken from stolen or usurped property, or from items that are forbidden in their essence, such as alcohol or pork. If the salary is from stolen money or from items forbidden in their essence, then it is not permissible. The explanation is as follows:
Forbidden money is of different types:
Forbidden in its essence, such as alcohol (khamr): Gifting it, paying wages from it, or buying and selling it is not permissible. It is forbidden for the owner of the alcohol and for the one who receives it. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
حُرِّمَتِ الْخَمْرُ بِعَيْنِهَا
"Alcohol has been forbidden in its essence." (Reported by an-Nasa’i)
Forbidden due to the right of a human, such as stolen or usurped property: This is forbidden for the thief and the usurper. Gifting it or paying wages from it is not permissible. It is forbidden for the one who earns it and for the one who takes it, because this money belongs to its rightful owner. Wherever it is found, it must be returned to its owner. Evidence for this includes:
Ahmad reported from Samurah, who said: The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
إِذَا سُرِقَ مِنَ الرَّجُلِ مَتَاعٌ، أَوْ ضَاعَ لَهُ مَتَاعٌ، فَوَجَدَهُ بِيَدِ رَجُلٍ بِعَيْنِهِ، فَهُوَ أَحَقُّ بِهِ، وَيَرْجِعُ الْمُشْتَرِي عَلَى الْبَائِعِ بِالثَّمَنِ
"If a man's property is stolen or lost, and he finds it in the possession of a specific man, he has more right to it, and the buyer returns to the seller for the price."
This is a text stating that stolen property must be returned to its owner. Similarly, usurped property is guaranteed to the one it was taken from; the usurper must return the usurped item to its owner, as reported by Samurah from the Prophet ﷺ who said:
عَلَى اليَدِ مَا أَخَذَتْ حَتَّى تُؤَدِّيَ
"The hand is responsible for what it has taken until it returns it." (Reported by at-Tirmidhi, who said it is a hasan Hadith).
Forbidden due to invalid transactions, such as Riba money and gambling money: If a person has wealth that is a mixture of Riba and halal money, then only the Riba portion of their wealth is forbidden for the one who earned it. The prohibition does not extend to the person who obtains it through a legitimate method from the owner of the Riba or gambling money. For example, if you sell goods to a person who deals in Riba and take the price from them, or if a woman receives her maintenance (nafakah) from a person who deals in Riba, or if a person who deals in Riba gives a gift to one of their relatives, or similar legitimate transactions. In these cases, the sin of that money falls on the one who deals in Riba, not on the one who takes the price, maintenance, or gift. This is because, in this situation, the prohibition does not attach to two different parties. Evidence for this includes:
- Allah (swt) says:
وَلَا تَكْسِبُ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ إِلَّا عَلَيْهَا وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَى
"No soul earns (evil) but against itself, and no bearer of burdens shall bear another's burden." (Surah Al-An'am [6]: 164)
- The Prophet ﷺ used to deal with the Jews in Madinah, despite knowing that most of their wealth came from Riba. Allah (swt) said:
فَبِظُلْمٍ مِنَ الَّذِينَ هَادُوا حَرَّمْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ طَيِّبَاتٍ أُحِلَّتْ لَهُمْ وَبِصَدِّهِمْ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ كَثِيراً * وَأَخْذِهِمُ الرِّبَا وَقَدْ نُهُوا عَنْهُ وَأَكْلِهِمْ أَمْوَالَ النَّاسِ بِالْبَاطِلِ
"For the wrongdoing of the Jews, We made unlawful for them certain good foods which had been lawful to them, and for their hindering many from Allah's way. And for their taking Riba while they had been forbidden from it, and their consuming of the people's wealth unjustly." (Surah An-Nisa [4]: 160-161)
The Prophet ﷺ would accept gifts from them, as reported by Ahmad from Ibn Abbas: A Jewish woman gifted the Messenger of Allah ﷺ a poisoned sheep. He sent for her and asked: "What prompted you to do what you did?" She said: "I thought—or I intended—that if you are a Prophet, Allah will inform you of it, and if you are not a Prophet, I would relieve the people of you."
- It is authentically reported from some Companions and Successors (Tabi'un) that they permitted accepting gifts from those who deal in Riba:
a. A man came to Ibn Mas’ud and said: "I have a neighbor who consumes Riba, and he constantly invites me (to eat)." He replied:
مَهْنَؤُهُ لَكَ وَإِثْمُهُ عَلَيْهِ
"The benefit is for you, and the sin is upon him." (Reported by Abd ar-Razzaq as-San'ani in his Musannaf).
b. Al-Hasan was asked whether the food of money changers could be eaten. He said:
قَدْ أَخبرَكُمُ اللَّهُ عَنِ الْيَهُودِ وَالنَّصَارَى، إِنَّهُمْ يَأْكُلُونَ الرِّبَا، وَأَحَلَّ لَكُمْ طَعَامَهُمْ
"Allah has informed you about the Jews and Christians; they consume Riba, yet He has made their food lawful for you." (Reported by Abd ar-Razzaq as-San'ani in his Musannaf from Ma’mar).
c. Mansur said: I said to Ibrahim: I stayed with a government official ('amil), and he hosted me and gave me a gift. He said: "Accept it." I said: "He is a person of Riba." He said: "Accept it, as long as you did not command him or help him in it." (Reported by Abd ar-Razzaq as-San'ani in his Musannaf from Ma’mar).
- Despite this, it is better not to deal with those whose wealth is mixed with Riba—one should not sell to them nor accept gifts from them out of scrupulousness (wara'), so that the seller does not take a price for their goods that is tainted with Riba, and does not accept a gift that might be from Riba funds. Thus, a Muslim stays far away from anything that is not pure or clean. The Companions of the Messenger ﷺ used to avoid several doors of permissible things for fear of approaching the forbidden. It is authentically reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
لَا يَبْلُغُ العَبْدُ أَنْ يَكُونَ مِنَ المُتَّقِينَ حَتَّى يَدَعَ مَا لَا بَأْسَ بِهِ حَذَراً لِمَا بِهِ البَأْسُ
"A servant will not reach the level of being among the righteous (Muttaqin) until they leave what is harmless for fear of falling into what is harmful." (Reported by at-Tirmidhi, who said it is a hasan Hadith).
In summary, it is permissible to sell to someone whose wealth is a mixture of Riba and halal, and it is permissible to accept their gift and take your salary from them. However, it is better not to sell to them, not to accept their gift, and not to work for them and take your salary from them. Accordingly, the employee who works in a permissible role in public service and takes their salary from an employer whose funds are a mixture of haram and halal, their salary is permissible for them, and it is permissible to take it without any embarrassment. The sin regarding Riba does not fall on the employee; rather, it falls on the entity for which they work.
I hope this answer is sufficient, and Allah is All-Knowing and All-Wise.
Your brother, Ata bin Khalil Abu al-Rashtah
9 Dhu al-Qi'dah 1441 AH 30/06/2020 CE
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