Fatwa's Insights - Islamic Finance

THE 47TH MEETING OF THE PERLIS STATE FATWA COMMITTEE / 2020

24 OGOS 2020 / 5 MUHARRAM 1442H

GUIDELINES ON KHIYAR (RIGHT OF OPTION) FOR ONLINE TRANSACTIONS

Islam places great emphasis on the protection of rights involving all parties engaged in a contract. Therefore, the provision of the right to choose whether to continue the contract, cancel it, or amend it in in case of dispute, referred to as khiyar, is established for the buyer or lessee.

In the context of online transactions, Islamic law permits several types of rights of option for the buyer or lessee either to continue the contract, cancel it, or amend the contract (khiyar) with their conditions, namely the right of option due to defect (Khiyar al-'Aib), the right of option due to discrepancy in specifications (Khiyar Khalf al-Wasfi), and the right of option after viewing the goods (Khiyar al-Ru'yah).

1. The conditions for the right to choose to proceed with, cancel, or amend the contract due to a defect in the goods are as follows:

* There is no condition from the seller that he will not be responsible for defects in the goods before the contract takes place.

* The defect affects the value or quality of the goods.

* The defect is not caused by the buyer or lessee. If the goods courier is appointed by the seller, then the seller is responsible for any defects to the goods during the delivery process. If the goods courier is appointed by the buyer, the buyer has no right to claim compensation from the seller. 

* The buyer notifies immediately or within the agreed period (if any) of the defect that has occurred to the seller upon discovering it, unless there is a reasonable impediment. 

* The buyer does not use the goods after becoming aware of its defect.

2. The conditions for the right to choose to proceed with, cancel, or amend the contract due to discrepancy in specifications are as follows:

* The buyer finds that the purchased goods do not match those advertised online, with a significant difference, and the seller did not specify the goods' details clearly. 

* The goods received by the buyer or lessee do not match those stated by the seller or lessor. 

* The buyer notifies immediately or within the agreed period (if any) of the defect that has occurred to the seller upon discovering it, unless there is a reasonable impediment. 

* The buyer does not use the goods after becoming aware of the discrepancy in its specifications.

If the conditions of khiyar are fulfilled, the buyer may either proceed with the contract (accepting the goods as they are), exchange them, cancel the contract, or claim compensation.

Approval of the Members of the Perlis State Fatwa Committee:

1. YBhg. S.S Prof Madya Dato' Arif Perkasa Dr Mohd Asri Bin Zainul Abidin – Mufti of the State of Perlis

2. Sahibul Fadhilah Dato' Kaya Bakti Dr. Mohd. Radzi bin Haji Othman

3. Sahibul Fadhilah Dato' Dr. Johari Bin Mat

4. Sahibul Fadhilah Profesor Dr. Basri bin Ibrahim

5. Sahibul Fadhilah Prof Madya Dr. Muhamad Rozaimi bin Ramle

6. Sahibul Fadhilah Dr. Hj Zaharuddin Bin Hj Abdul Rahman

7. Sahibul Fadhilah Prof. Madya Dr. Azman Bin Mohd Noor

8. Sahibul Fadhilah Prof Madya Dr. Mohd Akram Bin Dato' Dahaman @ Dahlan

9. Sahibul Fadhilah Dr. Kamilin Jamilin @ Ahmad Kamil Jamilin

10. Sahibul Fadhilah Dr Ahmad Sufian Bin Che Abdullah

11. Sahibul Fadhilah Prof Madya Dr Ahmad Wifaq Bin Mokhtar

12. Sahibul Fadhilah Ustaz Syed Abu Bakar Bin Syed Kamal Bharin

13. Ustaz Muhammad Khidhir Bin Abdul Ghani – Secretary

Endorsed at the Meeting of the Perlis Islamic Religious Council and Malay Customs (Majlis Agama Islam dan Adat Istiadat Melayu Perlis) Bil. 3/2020 on 10 September 2020.