My Father Doesn’t Pray and Drinks Alcohol. Can I Use the Money He Gives Me?

Answered by Ustadh Tabraze Azam

Question: Assalam alaykum

My father is a distributor of a well-known company. He does not pray, uses alcohol and rarely fasts. My dad uses credit cards (so he pays interest). Since I have no income, and am a full-time student in a private school, I have no way to pay my own tuition nor feed myself.

I have tried to restrict myself to eat less, to not give in charity with the money my dad gives us, but to no avail. Is my father’s money haram for me to use, or spend in charity?

Answer: Wa alaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,

No, it is not unlawful for you to use the money your father provides you.

If he has a lawful line of income, you can make a general assumption that the money which comes into your possession is from the lawful portion of his wealth. Otherwise, ask Allah Most High for an independent, lawful means of livelihood, and pray that your father changes his ways.

[al-Fatawa al-Hindiyya]

Please also see: What is the Ruling on Receiving Things From Others That Were Acquired With Unlawful Money? and: Accepting Wealth from a Person Whose Wealth is Predominantly Unlawful

And Allah Most High alone knows best.

wassalam,

[Ustadh] Tabraze Azam

Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Ustadh Tabraze Azam holds a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Leicester, where he also served as the President of the Islamic Society. He memorised the entire Qur’an in his hometown of Ipswich at the tender age of sixteen, and has since studied the Islamic Sciences in traditional settings in the UK, Jordan and Turkey. He is currently pursuing advanced studies in Jordan, where he is presently based with his family.