Cutting One’s Own Hair to Release Oneself from the State of Ihram

Answered by Shaykh Omar Qureshi
Question: According to the Shafii madhab can someone cut their own hair to come out of Ihram after performing Umrah?
Answer: Assalamu ‘alaikum,
In the name of Allah, Most Merciful and Compassionate.
The answer is yes. In the Shafi’i school it is permissible for one to cut one’s own hair. It is also permissible for one to cut the hair of someone else who has completed their ‘Umrah and is seeking to release themselves from the state of Ihram. Imam al-Nawawi mentions in al-Majmu’, “it would be permissible for a muhrim to shave the head of a person who has completed then rites of Hajj.” This is because a) it is not his or her own hair and b) the person whose head is being shaved is seeking release from Ihram and not in a state where cutting one’s hair or having it shaven is forbidden.
Also, if it was a requirement to have someone else cut one’s hair, then that would mean that one could not do ‘Umrah alone. This is what some jurists have mentioned.
Allah the Exalted knows.
Omar