Is dropshipping permissible, is my earning halal?

- Is it permissible to dropship i.e., to sell a product on the internet, either domestically or abroad, without owning or purchasing the product and without entering into a sales and marketing contract with the manufacturer/supplier (without the manufacturer’s/supplier's knowledge), simply by including the photos and writing specifications of the product and adding a certain profit?
- Is it permissible for me to do such business and is my earning halal?

Dear Brother / Sister,

Islam regards no harm in buying and selling a legitimate (not religiously prohibited) product or service in accordance with the commercial principles it imposed. As a rule, there is no religious obstacle to e-commerce, that is, traditional commerce to be carried out on the web or through mobile applications, provided that such commercial activities are carried out according to the decrees of the relevant general / specific official legislation.

Current e-commerce practices are as follows:

1. E-commerce based on direct selling:

There is no religious objection to manufacturers/suppliers’ selling their goods directly through e-commerce, in cash, in installments or by credit card, and shipping them directly to the customer’s address.

2. E-commerce based on marketing (marketplace):

There is no religious objection to an individual or commercial organization making an agreement with the manufacturer/supplier to act as an intermediary in the sale of their goods, and to receive a certain commission charge (fee) from the seller and/or buyer in return for the intermediation. There is no religious objection to e-commerce platforms marketing products belonging to manufacturers/suppliers in cash or in installments or by credit card, and sending those products directly to the customer’s address.

3. E-commerce based on the principle of delivering the purchased goods to the customer without receiving them:

If e-commerce platforms (intermediaries) sell the products that they purchase from the manufacturers/suppliers to their customers in cash or in installments and if they want suppliers to send the products directly to the customers, such a sale is not permissible for movable goods according to Hanafis (see Mawsili, Ikhtiyar, II, 15), for all kinds of goods according to Shafi’i madhhab (Shirbini, Mughnil-Muhtaj, II, 82, 236; IV, 707).

According to the Malikis, it is permissible related to the products except ribawi (that are sold by weight and measure) food items (Ibn Rushd, Bidayatul-Mujtahid, II, 144); according to the famous view of Hanbalis, it is permissible for all kinds of goods that do not necessitate immediate delivery. (Ibn Qudama, Mughni, VI, 188-189)

Since such sales have become customary today, there is no harm in acting according to the views that regard them permissible. What matters regarding the issue is that the producers or consumers must not be harmed due to the destruction of goods, deception, cheating, etc.

4. E-commerce based on order:

It is permissible to buy and sell a religiously permissible product in advance or to reserve it on the promise of buying it. However, the transaction of sale and purchase is not completed by ordering or promising to buy, but by receiving the goods and paying the price in cash or on credit.

5. E-commerce through dropshipping (without stock) method:

It is not permissible for intermediaries (e-commerce platforms) to offer a product that they do not own, without making any sales or marketing agreements with the suppliers, and then purchase it from the manufacturers/suppliers and send it to the customer as it means the sale of something that is not owned.

As a matter of fact, according to the narrations reported from the Prophet (pbuh), a person is not allowed to sell something that he does not own, even if he buys it from the market later and delivers it to the buyer. (Muwatta, Buyu’, 45; Abu Dawud, Ijarah, 34; Tirmidhi, Buyu, 19; Ibn Majah, Tijarat, 20)

Therefore, it is not permissible to market the products of the suppliers without stock through e-commerce method without purchasing them or being authorized for sale by the suppliers.

On the other hand, in e-commerce practices that are regarded as permissible, the customers' addressees are e-commerce companies. Besides, it is not permissible to sell monetary products such as gold and silver in installments in such sales.

Note:

1. As it is explained in the answer, it is not permissible to sell something that is not available. However, if it is available in the warehouse of the manufacturer or in the market, and there is a possibility of delivery at any time, it is halal to sell it even without stock, and the fact that it is not available in the warehouse of the seller at the time of the contract of sale does not harm the contract.

2. In all kinds of buying and selling, interest-bearing loan practices are not religiously permissible; they are haram.

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