Does Oral Sex during a Ramadan Fast Require an Expiation (Kaffara)?

Answered by Shaykh Isrhaad Sedick

Question

My friend engaged in unlawful sexual activity during Ramadan, but there was no intercourse. The act was oral, and she swallowed. Does she owe the kaffara, or is sincere tawba enough?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

No kaffara is required. In the Shafi’i school, expiation is only needed if someone deliberately breaks their Ramadan fast through sexual intercourse, which means penetration. Your friend should sincerely repent for the act and make up (qada) the fast for that day. Nothing else is required.

The Kaffara Is Specific to Intercourse

The kaffara for violating a Ramadan fast (freeing a slave, or fasting sixty consecutive days, or feeding sixty poor people, in that order) applies in the Shafi’i school to one case only: deliberately breaking the fast through sexual intercourse, while aware of its prohibition and mindful of the fast. [Nawawi, Minhaj al-Talibin; Ibn Naqib, ‘Umdat al-Salik]

Ibn Naqib (Allah have mercy on him) states that this expiation applies exclusively to sexual intercourse in the Shafi’i school, unlike the Hanafi school, where it extends to other deliberate violations such as eating and drinking. [‘Umdat al-Salik]

Since there was no penetration in your friend’s case, the kaffara does not apply.

The Shafi’i school is clear about this: even a woman who is penetrated during intercourse does not owe kaffara according to the main opinion, because her fast is broken by something entering her body, not by the act of intercourse itself. [‘Umdat al-Salik] If a woman in that situation does not owe kaffara, then your friend certainly does not.

The Fast Was Still Invalidated

Even though no kaffara is required, the fast for that day is still invalid. Deliberately swallowing anything that reaches the body cavity breaks the fast, as does climax from direct physical contact. [‘Umdat al-Salik]

The online sources your friend saw were right that only intercourse requires kaffara, but they were not complete if they said nothing else is needed. She must make up (qada) that fast day after Ramadan.

Hadith Anchor

Abu Hurayra (Allah be pleased with him) narrated that a man came to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) and said, “I am ruined, O Messenger of Allah!” He said, “What has ruined you?”

The man said, “I had intercourse with my wife in Ramadan.” He said, “Can you free a slave?” He said, “No.” He said, “Can you fast two consecutive months?” He said, “No.” He said, “Can you feed sixty poor people?” He said, “No.” [Bukhari; Muslim]

The scholars derived from this hadith that the kaffara is tied to intercourse specifically, which is why the school did not extend it to other violations.

Principle and Practical Guidance

The act itself is a serious sin, and doing it during Ramadan makes it even more serious. However, the chance to repent is always open.

Sincere tawba means feeling regret, stopping the sin immediately, and firmly resolving not to do it again.

Your friend’s quick regret shows her heart is alive. She should not lose hope in Allah’s mercy. Allah loves those who return to Him, and a sin followed by true repentance can bring a person closer to Him.

In practice, she needs to do two things: keep repenting and make up one fast.

She should also carefully avoid situations that could lead to sin, because protecting oneself from temptation is part of true repentance.

And Allah (Most High) knows best.

[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani

Related Answers

What Steps Should Be Taken after Engaging in Illicit Intercourse during Ramadan?
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The Fiqh of Fasting Ramadan According to the School of Imam Shafi’i.
Provides a comprehensive guide to the rulings, conditions, obligations, and invalidators of fasting according to the Shafi’i school.

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar Shaykh Taha Karaan (Allah have mercy on him), where he taught.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Shaykh Muhammad Awama, Shaykh Muhammad Hasan Hitu, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has been the Director of the Discover Islam Centre, and for six years, he has been the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has fifteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic podcast, education, and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy Prophetic living and fitness.