Does the consensual delay in the delivery of the agreed-upon sold item between the buyer and the seller, or delay due to shipping, fall under the jurisprudential prohibition of stipulating a delay in the delivery of a specified sold item? And what is the difference between the two?

The sold item is divided into two types:

1. What prohibits delaying its delivery and necessitates immediate possession: Such as gold, silver, and currency if bought with one of them, and every usurious commodity like wheat for wheat, based on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: “Gold for gold... hand to hand.”

2. What allows deferment in its sale: This is everything other than the aforementioned, and it is called a forward sale (Salam contract). For example, if you buy a specific commodity for an immediate price with deferred delivery, based on the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: “Whoever pays in advance for dates, let him pay in advance for a known measure and a known weight, for a known term.” It is permissible to defer both the price and the commodity in an Istisna’ (manufacturing) contract.

If the sale is concluded for a specific, present, non-usurious commodity, or a described commodity available with the seller (immediate Salam), it is permissible for the seller to delay its delivery, whether by agreement or without agreement. It is also permissible to agree on delaying the commodity for the seller to benefit from it for a known period, such as selling a house on the condition that the seller lives in it for a month. This is the view of the Maliki and Hanbali schools, based on the generality of Allah’s (Exalted is He) saying: ﴿O you who have believed, fulfill [all] contracts﴾, and the Prophet's (peace be upon him) saying: “Muslims are bound by their conditions, except a condition that forbids what is lawful or permits what is unlawful,” and the indication of Jabir’s (may Allah be pleased with him) hadith on the permissibility of stipulating the transportation of the camel to its owner after its sale. The jurists have differed on this matter.

Conclusion: There is no harm in the seller delaying the delivery of a specific non-usurious commodity, or a described commodity, whether with or without a condition.