An Appraisal of Al-Ijarah Al-Mawsufah Fi Al-Dhimmah (Forward Ijarah) from Fiqh Perspective

Abstract

Al-IjErah Al-MawIEfah FE Al-Dhimmah (forward ijErah) is a new form of transactions introduced to the Islamic banking industry which has original ground in the classical books of Islamic Jurisprudence. Most of the classical scholars discussed it with particularized ijErah in parallel without any separation of chapters or headings unlike al-BahEtE and al-MinhEjE. The scholars of four schools of Islamic Law are unanimously agreed on the legality of forward ijErah albeit some contemporary scholars mention the early dispute in this regard and attribute prohibition of forward ijErah to ×anafE School. This attribution is not accurate as it is proved by their many classical texts. Forward ijErah could be more flexible for both customers and banks to the extent that it does not become void if the stipulated usufruct damages while particularized ijErah becomes void because of damage of the object. Therefore, there is a need for further research in this regard in order to innovate some new tools that can improve the services of Islamic financial intuitions.