Is it permissible to take a loan from the government’s social fund?
Question The government in our country offers a loan to young people who graduate instead of employing them in government service. Is this loan halaal or haraam?. Praise be to Allah. The scholars are unanimously agreed that if it is stipulated that a loan be repaid with an additional amount, this is riba, which is…
Question
Praise be to Allah.
The scholars
are unanimously agreed that if it is stipulated that a loan be repaid with
an additional amount, this is riba, which is haraam.
Every loan
in which it is stipulated that something extra be paid back is haraam, and
there is no difference of scholarly opinion on this point. Ibn al-Mundhir
said: They are unanimously agreed that if the lender stipulates that the
borrower should pay something extra or give him a gift, and he gives the
loan on that basis, then taking the extra amount in return for that is
haraam.
It was
narrated that Ubayy ibn Ka’b, Ibn ‘Abbaas and Ibn Mas’ood forbade loans that
brought benefits. End quote. Al-Mughni (4/211)
Ibn ‘Abd
al-Barr said: Every additional amount given in return for a loan or favour
that benefits the lender is riba, even if it is just a handful of animal
feed. That is haraam if it is stipulated. End quote.
Al-Kaafi
(2/359).
Based on
this, if the loan is riba-based, whereby it is stipulated that the amount
borrowed be repaid with interest, then it is not permissible for you to take
this loan, because the contract is based on riba, and it is clear to you
that riba is a major sin. May Allaah make you independent of means so that
you have no need of this loan and similar schemes.
But if this
loan is a “goodly loan” and does not involve riba, and the borrower is
required to repay only what he took, and no more, then there is nothing
wrong with taking out this loan and benefiting from it.
And Allaah
knows best.
