What is the ruling on a woman who wears the niqab while in ihram, claiming her poor eyesight as the reason?

Question:
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh. This questioner says: If a woman is compelled to wear the niqab while in ihram due to poor eyesight, is she required to pay a fidyah or not?

Answer:
Yes, if she wears the niqab, she owes a fidyah (ransom payment), even if she needs it; because the one who is compelled to shave his head shaves and pays the fidyah by the explicit text of the Qur'an: charity. So if one needs to do a prohibited act among the prohibitions of ihram, he does it and pays the fidyah. This is for the one who needs to do a prohibited act; he is given the choice between these three things. So this woman is given the choice between feeding six poor people in Makkah, or slaughtering a sheep in Makkah and distributing it to the poor, or fasting for three days in any place. Fasting is permissible in any place, but the feeding and the fidyah must be in the Haram and distributed to the poor of the Haram.