Question Summary:
Selling items not in ownership

Question Detail:

I would like to know if we are alllowed to sell a product on a website even though I dont own the stock?

Answer :

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

One of the basic conditions for the validity of a sale in Shariah is that the commodity must be in the physical or constructive possession of the seller.  

Consider the following Hadith,

نَهَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَنْ سَلَفٍ وَبَيْعٍ، وَعَنْ شَرْطَيْنِ فِي بَيْعٍ، وَعَنْ بَيْعِ مَا لَمْ يُقْبَضْ، وَرِبْحِ مَا لَمْ يُضْمَنْ 

Rasulullah (Sallallahu alayhi Wasallam) explicitly prohibited that transaction wherein no possession of the item took place.

Therefore, is not permissible to sell an item that is not in one’s physical or constructive possession.

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

Huzaifah Deedat

Student Darul Iftaa
Lusaka, Zambia

Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.

__________

المعجم الأوسط- دار الحرمين (2/ 154)

 حَدَّثَنَا أَحْمَدُ قَالَ: نا عَبْدُ الْقُدُّوسِ بْنُ مُحَمَّدٍ الْحَبْحَابِيُّ قَالَ: نا عَمْرُو بْنُ عَاصِمٍ الْكِلَابِيُّ قَالَ: نا هَمَّامُ بْنُ يَحْيَى، عَنْ عَاصِمٍ الْأَحْوَلِ، وَابْنِ جُرَيْجٍ، عَنْ عَمْرِو بْنِ شُعَيْبٍ، عَنْ أَبِيهِ، عَنْ جَدِّهِ قَالَ: «نَهَى رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَنْ سَلَفٍ وَبَيْعٍ، وَعَنْ شَرْطَيْنِ فِي بَيْعٍ، وَعَنْ بَيْعِ مَا لَمْ يُقْبَضْ، وَرِبْحِ مَا لَمْ يُضْمَنْ»

لَمْ يَرْوِ هَذَا الْحَدِيثَ عَنْ عَاصِمٍ إِلَّا هَمَّامٌ، تَفَرَّدَ بِهِ: عَمْرٌو "