Question

Assalamualaykum I have studied in your questions about pensions and learnt that Alhamdulillah my workpension which is defined is halal to receive the funds from it.
However I would like to clarify that this type of pension is it halal in every case? Or is this type of pension conditional on the type of earnings from where it is derived from for it to be halal?
For my case this pension I am to receive in the next two years is from my work when I was a cashier in a UK retail bank.
I do not own any funds other than this. Is this money halal in shariah for me to take as income? What can this monies be used for? If shariah regards this income as haram then what solutions and practical ways can be given in shariah and legally in UK in my case to create halal income from this source of funds as I do not own anything and am trying to become financially independent.jazakumullah khayr.

Answer

When working for a bank there are two points to take into consideration:

1. The role itself. If the role requires you to do something impermissible then one would not be allowed to continue in that role and take payment for the tasks carried out. For example, if one was selling interest-based products or supporting such transactions then the role and payment would be unlawful. On the other hand, if the role was permissible such as an administrative role, then it would be permissible to continue in the role though better to find another job.

2. The source of income. If the employer’s source of income is lawful then it would be permissible to take a wage from the employer. If the income is a mix of lawful and unlawful then one would look at the amount of lawful income. If the employee’s wage falls within the lawful income of the employer then it would be permissible to take a wage, of course provided that the role is also lawful.

If based on the above information, one determines that their income from the company is lawful, then the funds from the pension would also be permissible to benefit from. If however, the role and income is determined to be impermissible then it would not be permissible to benefit from the pension fund. The reason being that the defined benefit pension is partially given as part of one’s salary, and as the individual is not entitled to a salary due to unlawful work they will also not be entitled to payments from the pension.

Answered by:
Ifta Research Fellow

Checked & Approved by:
Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
Mufti Zubair Patel