Answer
Wa `alaykum as-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
In this fatwa:
1- There is no objection is Shari`ah for removing the deformities or abnormalities of the human body. It is not considered changing Allah’s creation at all.
2- As for working as a cosmetic surgeon, the ruling depends on the way it is used.
In his response to your question, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and an Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states,
We are allowed to treat deformities or abnormalities, especially if they cause harm or suffering for the person affected by them. Removing a deformity is not considered akin to altering the creation of Allah; it is rather enhancing the creation.
Cosmetic surgery as a profession is not haram; it is the way one uses it that makes it haram; in this case, it is not different from any other profession; the halal use of it is halal and the haram use of it is haram.
I am sure there are cosmetic surgeons practicing in the Muslim world. You should explore this issue through the experts.
Allah Almighty knows best.
Editor’s note: This fatwa is from Ask the Scholar’s archive and was originally published at an earlier date.