Question:
As salaamu alaykum, I would like to know how tattoos may affect the salah. Does the tattoo make the salah deficient? If done after accepting Islam versus before shahadah? What measures need to be taken to rectify this sin?
Answer:
Wa alaykum salam wa rahmatuLlahi wa barakatuHu,
Tattoos are haram.
Removing tattoos is obligatory, unless one fears a harm that would warrant dry ablution [tayammum]. If one was a Muslim when they got the tattoo, then they must repent. If one embraced Islam with a tattoo, then past sins were wiped away upon accepting the din; accordingly, the sin of tattooing is forgiven. Still, when no harm is feared, a person who embraces Islam with tattoos, and likewise the one who got a tattoo while Muslim, must remove them. If harm is feared, then one does not need to do so. (al-Fatawa al-Kubra al-Fiqhiyyah v. 1, p. 164; Mughni al-Muhtaj v. 1, p. 406)
Shabramallisi did not necessarily exclude one who embraces Islam with tattoos. (Hashiyat al-Nihayah v. 2, p. 22-23) In fact, he stated,
وأما الكافر إذا وشم نفسه في الشرك ثم أسلم فالمتجه وجوب الكشط عليه بعد الإسلام
And Allah knows best.
Shafiifiqh.com Fatwa Dept.