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Fatwa CenterLawful alternatives to selling items not yet in possession
Question
bismillah alrahman alrahimi'm sorry that the question is a little long but i asked everywhere and no answer yet and i really would not want to get haram money . i live in the middle east and i want to open an internet shop that sells Products i don't have .when the Customer buys a product . i take the money (((i'll make sure not to use the money till the customer gets the product ))) and buy it from other sites like amazon etc.. i'll partner with a shipping company in the USA to get the shipment and ship it to the customer . is it halal to do that ? the product's price would be for example : the main price :50 USD the shipping cost :10 USD the price shown to the customer is : 60 USD so sometimes the customer would buy 2 or more products and the shipping cost will be less can i take the remaining money to my self ?and if the customer wants to return the shipment or replace it or it came Broken i'll return it .i'm so sorry for the long question i hope you answer it and thank you .
Answer
All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ʻalayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.
You can make a profit through this trade without religious violations in the following ways:
- Salam (advance payment sale): You agree with the customer to sell him a specified commodity with a definite description after a specified term. One of the conditions for the validity of this sale is that the customer pay you the price in full at the time of concluding the agreement. It is enough for him to deposit the payment in your bank account, for example, in return for you supplying the item and delivering it to him at the stipulated time and place. You are not obligated to mention the shipping fees or anything else; rather, you agree with the client on an overall price that he pays fully in advance. Please refer to Fataawa 11368 and 27508about Salam trade, its definition, conditions, and the relevant rules.
- Another lawful transaction is for the customer to request a commodity that you do not currently possess, and you inform him that it is not available to you but that you can supply it at a specified term in return for a specified commission; in this case, you act as his agent in buying the commodity. You are not entitled to anything more than the agreed-upon commission.
- A third transaction is to promise the customer to supply the desired commodity to him on a specified future date for a given price; when you buy that commodity and have it in your possession, you conclude the agreement with the customer to sell him the commodity at the price you both agree on.
Allaah Knows best.
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