Question Summary
Is one obliged to send salutations on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) when saying the shahada?
Question Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate
It is not an obligation to send blessings and salutations on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) when saying the testification of faith (shahada). [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
If you ask regarding the prayer, it is an emphasized sunna, in the Hanafi school, to send blessings and salutations on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) after the Tashahhud supplication in the final sitting. As for the after the first sitting, one does not send salutations as this entails delaying the next integral. [Ibid.]
The Shafi’i School
In other schools, such as the Shafii school, it is indeed obligatory to send salutations on the Prophet (may Allah bless him and give him peace) after the tashahhud supplication in the last sitting of the prayer, such that the prayer is invalid if omitted. [Shatiri, al-Yaqut al-Nafis]
Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani