Ruling on Transfering Points to a Customer when Using Credit Card

Answer:

All praise is due to Allah, peace and blessings be upon Prophet Mohammad: The given points are incentives for the clients in return for using certain products, or services. Tickets, ATM cards and credit cards..etc. are some of these incentives. From the view point of Islamic jurisprudence, the incentives on credit cards are either a loan, or a guarantee. Either way, they can be considered a donation from the issuer of these cards-be he a loaner, or a guarantor- and there is no harm in making use of them. Consequently, they are permissible, but with certain conditions: First: The transaction conducted through using these cards must be sound from the view point of Sharia since it is impermissible to receive incentives for using usurious cards. Second: The benefit behind these incentives must be permissible from the view point of Islamic Sharia since it is impermissible for the issuer to offer incentives that are unlawful such as non-Islamic insurance, prohibited gifts and visiting prohibited places. Third: No commissions are to be charged from the clients in return for these incentives because doing so is considered gambling and trickery. Fourth: The incentive must be a donation since it is impermissible to increase the regular value of a certain item to offer an incentive. This is in order to ward off gambling and trickery. Therefore, if the previous conditions on credit card incentives and tickets are met, then taking advantage of them is permissible in Sharia, or else it isn`t. And Allah knows best.