Changing one’s date of birth

27-3-2023 | IslamWeb

Question:

Assalamu Alaikum! Sheikh! I'm a girl and My father changed my actual birth year from 2005 to 2007, for future job reasons. I was 11 when he did that. And now I regret what he did. I know it's lying and deceit. And I have used this birth year in all my board exams because it's on my birth certificate. I can change it but it will create some problems and I have to go to government offices and so on. So am I obliged to change it to the actual birth year? I may face problems. And if I do a job using this false birth year and do not retire after my retirement age has passed (because my false birth year is 2 years younger than my actual one), will my income be haram? JazakAllahu Khayran
Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

Changing one’s real date of birth counts as a lie, and the basic principle is that lying is forbidden in Islam. However, if having one’s own rights depends on it and it does not incur any harm, it is permissible.

Ibn Al-Qayyim may Allaah have mercy upon him said in Zad Al-Ma’ad: “An example in this regard is lying to oneself or others when it involves incurring no harm to others if it would lead to getting one’s rights. This applies to the situation of Al-Hajjaj ibn ‘Illaat when he lied to the disbelievers in Makkah about Muslims to get his money back and no harm was incurred to Muslims.”

Accordingly, you do not have to change the date of birth in your birth certificate and document your real date of birth, especially if changing it would result in incurring harm or hardship. It is permissible for you to use your false date of birth only to claim your own rights. As for the benefits and interests to which you are not entitled and require having a different date of birth other than your real one, it is impermissible for you to obtain them with this fake birth certificate because this falls under the category of cheating and deceiving people.

Allah knows best.

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