Can I Revoke the Access to a Service I Have Granted to a Family Member?

Answered by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Question: Assalamu alaykum

I own the account for a shopping service and I’m paying for its premium benefits. I’ve added a house hold member to share these benefits. However, I wish to no longer share it with this particular person.

Being the main account holder I have the right to remove and add people. Will it be permissible to remove this person without informing them, or is this considered a gift that I cannot take back?

Answer: Wa ‘alaykum as-salam wa rahmatullah wa barakatuh

I pray you are well.

Yes, it is permissible for you to revoke access to this service from anyone you wish. This is not the transfer of ownership of an item by means of a gift (hiba); rather, it is merely permission to access as utilise something (ibaha), therefore removing it is not considered rescinding a gift (Maydani, al-Lubab).

It may be wise to speak to the person beforehand, lest the removal lead to tensions between yourself and this other person. If you choose to allow this person to benefit from this service it will be counted as an act of charity for you, and the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and grant him peace) told us, ‘Do not think that the even the slightest bit of good is inconsequential’ (Bukhari).

May Allah grant you the best of both worlds.

Wassalam,
[Shaykh] Abdul-Rahim Reasat

Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat began his studies in Arabic Grammar and Morphology in 2005. After graduating with a degree in English and History he moved to Damascus in 2007 to study and sit at the feet of some of the most erudite scholars of our time.

Over the following eighteen months he studied a traditional curriculum, studying with scholars such as Shaykh Adnan Darwish, Shaykh Abdurrahman Arjan, Shaykh Hussain Darwish and Shaykh Muhammad Darwish.

In late 2008 he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continued his studies for the next six years, in Fiqh, Usul al-Fiqh, Theology, Hadith Methodology and Commentary, Shama’il, and Logic with teachers such as Dr Ashraf Muneeb, Dr Salah Abu’l-Hajj, Dr Hamza al-Bakri, Shaykh Ahmad Hasanat, Dr Mansur Abu Zina amongst others. He was also given two licences of mastery in the science of Qur’anic recital by Shakh Samir Jabr and Shaykh Yahya Qandil.

His true passion, however, arose in the presence of Shaykh Ali Hani, considered by many to be one of the foremost tafsir scholars of our time who provided him with the keys to the vast knowledge of the Quran. With Shaykh Ali, he was able to study an extensive curriculum of Qur’anic Sciences, Tafsir, Arabic Grammar, and Rhetoric.

When he finally left Jordan for the UK in 2014, Shaykh Ali gave him his distinct blessing and still recommends students in the UK to seek out Shaykh Abdul-Rahim for Quranic studies. Since his return he has trained as a therapist and has helped a number of people overcome emotional and psychosomatic issues. He is a keen promoter of emotional and mental health.