Is it permissible to travel to the lands of the disbelievers for study?

Question:
May Allah reward you. The questioner asks: Is it permissible to travel to the lands of the disbelievers for study? And may Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
Traveling to the lands of the disbelievers is not permissible except in specific circumstances. This is because it poses a danger to the religion, to the creed, and to the obligatory duties. The obligation is the opposite: the Muslim should move from the lands of the disbelievers to the lands of the Muslims; this is the migration that is obligatory. As for the opposite, going from the lands of the Muslims to the lands of the disbelievers, this is not permissible except in specific circumstances. For example, a person who wants to seek treatment and has no treatment available except in the lands of the disbelievers; there is no harm in him traveling to the extent of the need. A person who has a trade and wants to go to buy goods or deal with factories; there is no harm in this to the extent of the need. Or a person who wants to learn, who wants to learn a science that does not exist in the lands of the Muslims, such as engineering, manufacturing, or a craft that is not found in the lands of the Muslims, and he is in need of it, or the Muslim community is in need of this specialization. There is no harm in him traveling to the extent of the need, to the extent of what he learns. However, it is required of everyone—the trader, the student, and the patient—who travel to foreign lands to display their religion, to hold fast to their religion, to take pride in it, and not to compromise on any part of their religion. This is because a Muslim is a Muslim whether he is in the lands of the Muslims or in the lands of the disbelievers; he is a Muslim wherever he is. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: in any place. Yes.