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Is it permissible to lease a commercial shop for a percentage of the profit or interest, and does this apply to machinery and animals?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Scholars have differed on the permissibility of the wage being a percentage of the profits. The majority of them prohibited it due to the uncertainty of the wage, drawing an analogy to the Prophet's (peace be upon him) prohibition of hiring a worker until his wage is made clear to him. However, the Hanbalis permitted it, drawing an analogy to musaqat (irrigation contract) and muzara'ah (cultivation contract), where it is permissible to give land to someone to cultivate it for a known share of its produce. They cited as evidence the Prophet's (peace be upon him) arrangement with the people of Khaybar, giving them half of what was produced from it. Some meticulous scholars have favored the view of the Hanbalis, considering this to be a form of partnership (musharakat) rather than a rental (ijarat). They cited the Hadith of Khaybar and the permissibility of mudarabah (profit-sharing partnership) as evidence. Based on this, it is permissible for the owner of a shop, machine, or animal to rent it out for a percentage of the profit.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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