The Law of Buying Goods with Advances

Buying an item at a high price causes many people look for various payment methods, ranging from installments, credit, to using down payments before repaying them and changing ownership.  We will discuss about down payment.

Advances are money paid in advance by prospective buyers of goods to the seller. The money given is smaller than the price of the item you want to buy. Then, how is the law of buying goods with this down payment works?

Hadith Amru bin Shuaib, from his father, from his grandfather, that he said:

نهى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن بيع العربان قال مالك وذلك فيما نرى والله أعلم أن يشتري الرجل العبد أو يتكارى الدابة ثم يقول أعطيك دينارا على أني إن تركت السلعة أو الكراء فما أعطيتك لك

“Meaning: The Prophet sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam forbade buying and selling with a cash advance system. Imam Maalik said: “And this is what we see – Allah knows – a person who buys slaves or rents a vehicle-animal then says, “I give you a dinar provided that I cancel (not) buy or not rent it, then money what I have given is yours.”

[AdSense-B]

With the existence of the hadith, the law of buying goods with a down payment is allowed by Hambaliyyah and Imam Ahmad. According to him, down payment is compensation given to sellers who wait and store items to be purchased by the prospective buyer. However, with the advance payment, it is expected that there is a waiting time for the prospective buyer to pay off the money.

However, there are those who argue that the law of buying goods with a down payment is unlawful,

Rasululloh shollallohu ‘alaihi wa sallam said,

لا يحل سلف وبيع ، ولا شرطان في بيع. رواه الخمسة

“There can be no debt and buy and sell and two conditions in one sale and purchase.”

(HR Al Khomsah)

This is the opinion of Hanafiyyah, Malikiyyah, and Syafiiyyah. Advances are forbidden because they eat other people’s assets in a vanity way. Eating vanity assets is illegitimate according to Surah An-Nisa verse 29.

يا أيها الذين آمنوا لا تأكلوا أموالكم بينكم بالباطل إلا أن تكون تجارة عن تراض منكم ولا تقتلوا أنفسكم إن الله كان بكم رحيما

“O ye who believe, do not eat each other’s treasures in a vanity way, except by the way of commerce that applies with the likes of you. And do not kill yourself; surely Allah is the Most Merciful to you.”

The requirement for canceling the down payment is the requirement to give a down payment. In addition, it also returns the transaction items with the expectation that one party is not pleased.

[AdSense-C]

Of the two opinions, the Jurisprudence Council with an agreement that needs to be agreed upon:

1. When you want to buy an item, the prospective buyer gives less money than the price of the agreed upon the item. There are requirements that need to be fulfilled, namely, the buyer must buy the item. What is not allowed is the handover of the item before it is paid off.
2. Buying and selling whose payment uses a down payment is a limit waiting for him to be certain.
3. If, such as not buying, the seller is better to return the advance because it is better for him. There is a greater reward in the sight of Allah SWT. This is called Iqalah.

The contract is said as the following example, “If I take the item, then this is part of the value of the property. If I do not return the item, then this money is for you.”

This money is analogous to money that should be replaced by the buyer to compensate the seller to wait and save the transaction items for some time.

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