Permissible and Impermissible employment

Earning money through social media tasks

Q: There is a platform where you earn money by engaging with social media—liking and following users on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube. Every day, you're given a set number of simple social media tasks (such as following a profile or liking a post), and you're paid for completing them. 

When you first join, you're required to purchase a package—this is often referred to as an "exam" or "activation" package. The size of your daily task quota (and potential earnings) depends on the package you choose. For example, if you buy a package worth around $550, you'll receive 7 tasks per day. More expensive packages generally unlock more tasks and higher daily earnings. 

You can also boost your income through referrals. By inviting others to join CloudBoost, you earn a commission when they sign up and purchase a package. Additionally, when the people you invited start referring others, you earn a percentage of their activity as well—creating a multi-level earning structure. Is this pyramide scheme and therefore haraam?

Earning by helping university students write their assignments, reports and research papers.

Q: I am a single mother (not divorced) living with my parents. I do not pay rent or utility bills, but I manage all other expenses for myself and my baby, including food, clothes, diapers, milk, etc. 

The baby’s father sends a small amount (around 20,000 PKR) monthly — sometimes not even that. 

I work from home and earn about 1.5 lakh PKR per month by helping university students write their assignments, reports, and research papers. I use tools like ChatGPT to generate answers and then rephrase the content using other software. I work very hard and honestly, but now I’m very worried: Is this income halal or haram in Islam? 

I want to raise my son as a Hafiz-e-Quran and a good Muslim. I don’t want to feed him with haram money, but this is the only source of income I have right now. I am very stressed and confused. Please guide me according to Islamic teachings.

Earnings of a person who works for a company that has some wrong dealings

Q: If I become an electrical engineer and my company takes interest from a bank, will my income be haram? 

If I become an electrical engineer and the company does something haram in a way that they think it's halal (since they don’t know that saying haram is halal is shirk), will I become a disbeliever or sinner for working in that company? 

If my company works with another company that does haram activities or considers haram as halal (since they have no idea that calling haram halal is shirk), then for working in such companies, will I become a disbeliever or sinner? Will my income be haram? Will having the desire to work in such companies make me a disbeliever or sinner? 

If the people in my company are Muslim but they commit shirk or make mockery of Islam, or if they work with companies that do such things — then will I become a disbeliever or sinner for joining those companies? 

And if those companies are at a very high level and offer a handsome salary, will wanting to work there make me a disbeliever or sinner?

Recruiting a teacher to teach music

Q: If a female works for a recruitment company for schools (they provide teachers to schools) and these temporary teachers can be provided for any class such as music, English, business, maths (it’s not for a specific lesson). Is their income halal even if we know that they will be supplying teachers for a music lesson?