Smuggling Tobacco
Question:
What is is the Islamic ruling on purchasing tobacco products over the legal allowance from duty free countries and bringing them into the UK and selling them on for a profit? For example, if I travel to Dubai and buy 600 cigarettes, the legal allowance per person is 200, and once in the UK, I sell the them for a profit, is this permissible?
بسم الله الرحمن الرحیم
Answer:
It is legally prohibited and against Islamic teachings to smuggle tobacco in this manner and profit from it. Several violations from an Islamic perspective and legal perspective will occur in this process.
قال الله تعالى: وأوفوا بالعهد. وقال الله تعالى: وتعاونوا على البر والتقوى ولا تعاونوا على الإثم والعدوان. وقال تعالى: ولا تلقوا بأيديكم إلى التهلكة. وراجع فتاوى محموديه (٢٤/١٥٩) وفتاوى عثماني (٣/٨٩)۔
Allah knows best
Yusuf Shabbir
20 Muḥarram 1441 / 20 September 2019
Approved by: Mufti Shabbir Ahmad and Mufti Muhammad Tahir