Business and Dealings

Q: My father is a banker. On my wedding day, he gave me gold as a gift. Is that gold halaal for me?

Q: I own a riba house and want to get rid of it for free. Problem is, my sister lives there who refuses to sell, parents are arguing with me not to sell and my wife wants to either repossess the house or she wants a share. Please give me your opinion.

Q: About three years ago we found a parrot. Being a captive bred bird and its wings were clipped we kept the bird and took care of it. We made an effort in the area to find the owner, but was unsuccessful and to date no one has come forward to claim the bird. We have given up looking for the owner. Can we sell the bird to recoup the money spent in looking after the bird. Money was spent on buying a cage, other equipment, food and vet fees? If not, please advise what we should do?

Q: Can we take a loan to buy a land from a Shariah compliant Islamic bank (barwa bank) here in qataar?

Q: About buying a house in the UK on interest (sood) mortgage. One mortgage is standard and one is Islamic. In stranded the bank will show you how much interest you will pay and in Islamic the bank will show you how much rent you will pay. But many people and Ulama say that Islamic mortgage is also same as standard mortgage. Because you want to buy house that you don’t want to pay rent to council or to the owner then why should you pay it to Islamic mortgage and one of my friends has spoken to a mortgage adviser about both mortgages and he said that both mortgages are the same, the only difference is in the name.

Q: In our country is it necessary to pay income tax. If one does not pay the tax from his salary or money, then will that money become haraam?

Q: I run a small Madrasah from home. Is it permissible for me take a once off non-refundable admission/registration fee?

Q: I wish to sell items via an online platform, BidorBuy. Buyers make payment directly to Bidorbuy. They then make the funds available to the Seller for payout. Bidorbuy takes a 1.5% cut of the sale as a commission. As a Seller, I am allowed to choose which payment methods I can make available for potential Buyers. Please advise on their permissibility (questions 1 - 6):

1. BobPay EFT BobPay EFT is available to Sellers provided they can receive payout requests into a South African bank account. Bidorbuy receives the EFT transfer from the Buyer and the Bidorbuy account of the Seller is then credited with this amount, minus the bank fees charged by Bidorbuy (currently set at 5% per transaction).

2. BobBucks BobBucks are Bidorbuy vouchers. Buyers are able to purchase items using BobBucks from Sellers who offer BobPay EFT. As far as Sellers are concerned, the BobBucks voucher credit will be treated in the same way as a BobPay EFT. The funds are credited to the Sellers' Bidorbuy account and they may request a payout. BobBucks will automatically be offered alongside BobPay EFT as a payment option. If Buyers purchase items valued at more than the BobBucks voucher, they will need to pay a top-up payment using other payment methods. If they purchase items valued at less than the BobBucks voucher, the 'change' will remain in their BobBucks account for them to use the next time they choose to.

3. BobPay Credit Card The BobPay Credit Card payment system allows Sellers to accept credit card payments from Buyers. Bidorbuy receives the credit card payment and the Bidorbuy account of the Seller is then credited with this amount, minus the bank fees charged by Bidorbuy (currently set at 5% per transaction). Sellers should note the risk of charge backs. The Seller ultimately takes the risk for reversal of the transaction in case the credit card was used fraudulently (a charge back can take place up to 180 days after the transaction).

4. Discovery Miles Buyers with Discovery Miles (which they earn with their Discovery Credit card) can shop on Bidorbuy and pay for items from Sellers that accept Discovery Miles.

5. PayLater PayLater facilitates loans up to R8000 through a third party registered credit provider. PayLater is only available to selected Sellers with a good track record on Bidorbuy. As soon as the Buyer's loan is approved, the funds will be matched to the relevant order in the Seller's Bidorbuy account.

6. Escrow service This involves using a trusted agent who keeps the money until the Buyer signals that the payment may be released to the Seller. Should there be any dispute, then the escrow company intervenes returning the money to the Buyer after the goods have been returned to the Seller, if applicable. This method is rather costly for Sellers and is occasionally used for high value transactions.

***

7. As a Seller, I have to request a payout of the money in my Bidorbuy account. May I withdraw money in this manner, it is the only option:

Payout Requests

In order to withdraw funds that Bidorbuy is holding in your Bidorbuy account, you are required to make a payout request from the Bidorbuy website. Users have 1 free payout in a calendar month, regardless of the amount requsted. Thereafter a R5.00 BobPay transfer fee will be charged for any payout amount under R3,000.00. For amounts over R3,000.00, no BobPay transfer fee will be charged. If a user has used their 1 free payout and requests another payout below R3,000.00, the R5.00 BobPay transfer fee will be charged. If a user has R5.00 in their account, the system will not process the payment if a BobPay transfer fee is applicable.

A user can also not request less than R5.00 as a payout.

Q: One of my colleagues asked me to lend him some money like 10 thousand which he wanted to use for his personal use. He said he would give me back 12 thousand in one month. I rejected his offer saying it is haraam. He asked me to buy him something like a computer for 10 thousand and he was ready to buy it from me at 12 thousand. But he would give me after 1 month. If he pays early, no discount and if he pays late, no extra money he will give but I can demand my money after 1 month. He purchased from me and he sold it in the market and got cash to satisfy his needs. Later after one month he gave me 12 thousand. Is the profit of 2 thousand haraam?

Q: I work in a forwarding and clearing company in the export department. We have a client that exports variety of food stuff to Dubai often it is haraam foods. I will soon have to handle this account. Would it be permissible for me to arrange the shipments (transport / custom clearance) of these haraam foods. If not please make dua Allah Ta'ala protects me from this.