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Can Muslims Use Credit Cards for Business?

28 August, 2026
Q I am from India. Is it permissible in Islam to use a credit card for business? I mean buying products with a credit card because it gives a discount and time for repayment of the money for the product. If I buy with cash or a debit card, it does not give a discount, so I can't buy low and sell with a good profit. I cancelled a few credit cards because I found that when we sign the agreement, we agree to pay interest if we do not pay the bill on time. It is not permissible for a Muslim to commit himself to doing something that Allah has forbidden. In India, only riba-based banks are available. Most Muslims, including me, have opened/used savings accounts and salary accounts, which give interest, because of helplessness and powerlessness, and use riba-based accounts as a guarantee for government schemes and business. Current accounts do not give interest, but the deposited amount benefits the bank. They use the money to give interest-based loans. For jobs, social benefits, and business in India, Muslims may have to commit themselves to doing something that Allah has forbidden. Question: Can I keep/use a credit card for business? All Indian Muslims keep savings accounts because of compulsion and for business and other purposes.

Answer

Prof. Dr. Monzer Kahf
28 August, 2026

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

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All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

In this fatwa:

Using a conventional credit card for business or personal matters is permissible under the stated conditions: the full balance must be paid by the due date, and interest-bearing cash withdrawals must be avoided. Accrued interest from savings accounts should be given to Muslim charity as a purification donation rather than considered Sadaqah.

Responding to your question, Prof. Dr. Monzer Kahf, Professor of Islamic Finance and Economics at Qatar Faculty of Islamic Studies, states:

Using conventional (i.e., issued by conventional banks with a clause of interest if one does not pay on time) credit cards is permissible for business or personal matters, provided two conditions are fulfilled:

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  1. You pay the full amount of the bill within the grace period by the due date, since any delay will invoke the interest condition;
  2. and you do not use the credit card for cash withdrawal from the machine because interest will then be charged immediately from the day of withdrawal. Signing the contract with the interest condition if you do not pay on time is permissible because you will pay on time and avoid this condition being implemented, as it is suspended on a matter that is in your hands (paying on time).

For savings accounts, it is also permissible, provided the accrued interest is given to Muslim charity (the poor and needy or Muslim charitable organizations) in India. This purification donation is not considered Sadaqah, but you will, InshaAllah, be rewarded for keeping your own funds pure and clean.

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Almighty Allah knows best.

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