Is money taken from truck drivers in exchange for exceeding the overloading limit—whether through official receipts not submitted to the state, or without official receipts, following the practice of colleagues—lawful or unlawful? And what should be done about it?

The fees imposed for excess weight by law fall under the category of financial discretionary punishment (ta'zir bi al-mal), which the majority of scholars prohibit. Those who permit it stipulate justice and public interest, not confiscation of wealth through falsehood. Financial discretionary punishment, according to those who permit it, means withholding money for a period to deter the transgressor, then returning it to him, and not for the ruler or the treasury to take it. If these funds are not deposited into the state treasury, then taking them is clear injustice. And if the employee takes them for himself, it is unlawful and ill-gotten gain.