Previously we discussed about different views of fiqh scholar regarding the use of plastic card. Today we will talk about issues of credit
card. There is hope that credit card can be legally practiced in conventional banking. However there are some questionable issues:
Bill Payment (Credit Card Statement)
In the book of fiqh said that in the assurance practice, merchant (tajir / shahib al-haq) may ask for credit given to the guaranteed (madhmun ‘anhu) through the two parties, guarantor (underwriter) or through guaranteed. While in the process of credit card, the merchant may only ask to the bank.
There’s another view that is similar but with the addition to the party providing the credit (madhmun lahu) in asking for credit only through underwriters (dhamin), although the guaranteed is in place and able to pay. Therefore, there is accord with the concept of the credit card practice, and this is one manifestation of muamalah objective in the concept of Islam. It is a problem for merchants if they have to ask to credit card users who are in all over the world.
Administrative Fees
Doubt occurs from fiqh scholars that credit card practice is applied to loan agreement (al-qardh) and they assume that administration fee is credit compensation provided to customers. If so, this is one of interest practice and it is unlawful.
However, when viewed in more detail can be seen that the administrative fees of card making is not to compensate the bank guarantor (dhamin), but to pay the manufacture and as a mean of identification cards for customers to obtain goods and services.
Therefore it can be said that the administrative fees generated due to manufacture of card is not a guarantee of compensation from the bank, and thus does not undermine the security practices governed by Islam.
Deducting the Bill Payment
Among the terms given to the merchant, the merchant must give percentage of bills to be paid by the bank. If the percentage of payments is as bank’s return, it will damage the halal status of dhaman or credit card practice.
Hanafi and Hanbali scholars allow the guarantor (dhamin) accept return provided by the receivables/debt providers (madhmun lahu), then guarantor (bank) charge the bill used by guaranteed/customer (madhmun ‘anhu) that it is not the amount that paid to receivable providers.
Late Fee (gharamah ta’khiriyyah)
There is an agreement between bank and customers that customers should pay the bill at a predetermined time period. If the payment is late, customers will get a certain percentage of late fees. This fine is the practice of usury and is forbidden because it is similar to debt interest.
Cash Withdrawal
This is credit given by bank with guarantee card held by the customer, and in practice is allowed. But in taking money using the card, bank sets administrative fee by deducting a certain percentage of money taken by customers.
In this case the fiqh scholars are grouped into three:
- Cost deducting is permissible as the compensation of bank services to save the money and transfer money between local banks as well as from local to non-local bank.
- Bank may take a certain amount of administrative costs, while the percentage of the nominal amount of money taken is not allowed.
- Bank is not legitimate to take certain amount of fee because by cash withdrawal using credit card is categorized as credit (al-qardh), and the fee will be classified as interest and automatically it is the practice of usury.
