What is the ruling on the earnest money?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner: I mean, for all this time I have understood that the earnest money is permissible, and you have spoken in its favor.
The Shaykh: No, no, the earnest money has two cases: one is a portion of the price, but this is not an earnest money in the sense that if the buyer backs out, it becomes permissible for the seller. For example, if you paid him half the price, and the total price was ten thousand or twenty thousand, and you paid him half of the original price, say five thousand or ten thousand, and then for some reason you backed out, it does not become permissible for him to keep it. There is a very important hadith in fiqh and in the books of hadith regarding a sale called "the sale of the calamity" (bay' al-jahah). The guarantor, which is known to us in the Levant as the guarantor of the fruits, comes and guarantees this orchard for, say, a certain amount, and pays the owner of the orchard the price. Then a calamity occurs, such as a strong wind or something, which causes the fruit to fall to the ground, and he profits nothing. Who is it? The buyer. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered the owner of the orchard to return the price and said:.
The student :Sunan Ibn Majah 2219Sahih (Darussalam) .
The Shaykh: Ah, look, here, even though it has become a sale and purchase, all that remains is to harvest the fruit. But the owner of the orchard was caught off guard by this storm, which caused all the fruit to fall. It is not permissible for him to take the money he had received. Here, the earnest money is much worse than this case, and yet it is not permissible for him to eat a single cent of it unless the buyer who backed out consents. Therefore, I returned to two issues. The first issue concerns him making a concession and forgiving his Muslim brother because he has repented; for Allah (Mighty and Majestic) will forgive his slip on the Day of Resurrection. If he does not want to, then we order the buyer to reconcile with him until his heart is pleased.
The questioner: Our Shaykh, our case... praise be to Allah, after a period of time.
The Shaykh: Ah, good, praise be to Allah.
The questioner: But we...
The Shaykh: Yes, may Allah bless you.
The questioner: By Allah, today no one enforces it.
The Shaykh : Oh?
The questioner: The one who takes it today, no one enforces it; it is returned to you.
Another questioner: But the issue of the money, the amount is large. We said this because I am not intending to take what is forbidden or riba. I am, if Allah wills, far from that. I mean, if Allah wills, but I said we might benefit a little from it. It is as if I heard a fatwa from Shaykh Ibn Baz, and they said he retracted it. And they conveyed to me from your eminence that you issued a fatwa that this should be given. I wanted to confirm.
The Shaykh: What did you hear from Ibn Baz?
The questioner: That it should be given to the state as taxes, and not taxes, and so on.
The Shaykh: No, I do not say that.
The questioner: Ah, praise be to Allah... I mean, if it is true, one must verify it himself.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good.
The questioner: As you mentioned a moment ago.
The Shaykh: No, no, the earnest money has two cases: one is a portion of the price, but this is not an earnest money in the sense that if the buyer backs out, it becomes permissible for the seller. For example, if you paid him half the price, and the total price was ten thousand or twenty thousand, and you paid him half of the original price, say five thousand or ten thousand, and then for some reason you backed out, it does not become permissible for him to keep it. There is a very important hadith in fiqh and in the books of hadith regarding a sale called "the sale of the calamity" (bay' al-jahah). The guarantor, which is known to us in the Levant as the guarantor of the fruits, comes and guarantees this orchard for, say, a certain amount, and pays the owner of the orchard the price. Then a calamity occurs, such as a strong wind or something, which causes the fruit to fall to the ground, and he profits nothing. Who is it? The buyer. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) ordered the owner of the orchard to return the price and said:
With what does one of you eat?
بِمَ يأكل أحدكم ؟The student :
should not take any of his brother's money
فلا يأخُذْ من مال أخيه شيئًاThe Shaykh: Ah, look, here, even though it has become a sale and purchase, all that remains is to harvest the fruit. But the owner of the orchard was caught off guard by this storm, which caused all the fruit to fall. It is not permissible for him to take the money he had received. Here, the earnest money is much worse than this case, and yet it is not permissible for him to eat a single cent of it unless the buyer who backed out consents. Therefore, I returned to two issues. The first issue concerns him making a concession and forgiving his Muslim brother because he has repented; for Allah (Mighty and Majestic) will forgive his slip on the Day of Resurrection. If he does not want to, then we order the buyer to reconcile with him until his heart is pleased.
The questioner: Our Shaykh, our case... praise be to Allah, after a period of time.
The Shaykh: Ah, good, praise be to Allah.
The questioner: But we...
The Shaykh: Yes, may Allah bless you.
The questioner: By Allah, today no one enforces it.
The Shaykh : Oh?
The questioner: The one who takes it today, no one enforces it; it is returned to you.
Another questioner: But the issue of the money, the amount is large. We said this because I am not intending to take what is forbidden or riba. I am, if Allah wills, far from that. I mean, if Allah wills, but I said we might benefit a little from it. It is as if I heard a fatwa from Shaykh Ibn Baz, and they said he retracted it. And they conveyed to me from your eminence that you issued a fatwa that this should be given. I wanted to confirm.
The Shaykh: What did you hear from Ibn Baz?
The questioner: That it should be given to the state as taxes, and not taxes, and so on.
The Shaykh: No, I do not say that.
The questioner: Ah, praise be to Allah... I mean, if it is true, one must verify it himself.
The Shaykh : May Allah reward you with good.
The questioner: As you mentioned a moment ago.
Source
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The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.