Fatwa ID: 06484

Answered by: Alimah Zainab Nakhuda

Question:

I’m travelling to a place 200 km away. I left today Thursday after maghrib. Will be there until Friday Jumuah 8th July. Am I Musafir or not

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer:

There are 2 aspects to consider when talking about whether a person will be a Musaafir (traveller) or not:

1. Will they be a Musaafir whilst travelling from location 1 to location 2?
2. Will they be a Musaafir during the time that they stay at location 2?

In regards to the first point, then a person will be a traveller if they are travelling more than 48 Shar’ee miles (equivalent to about 88 km or 55 English miles)¹. Because your travel distance (200 km) is more than the required limit of 88 km, yes, on your way to the second location you will be considered a Musaafir. Hence, as soon as you have left your city/locality, you will perform Qasr Salaah, be exempt from fasting etc.²

In regards to the second point mentioned above, will you be considered a legal traveller during your stay at the second location (hence will you continue to perform Qasr Salah, be exempt from Jumuah/Eid Salah, etc.), then this is dependent on how many days you intend to stay at the second location. If you intend to stay for more than 15 days, then you will not be considered a Musaafir once you have reached your destination. However, if you intend to stay for less than 15 days, then yes, you will be considered a Musaafir during your stay at the second location². Hence all the rulings of a Musaafir will still apply to you (shortening of prayers, exemption from fasting, etc.).

In your question, you mentioned that you left today, Thursday. I am unsure which date this falls under exactly, but you can count the number of days you are intending to stay at this location to determine whether or not you will stay as a Musaafir.

Only Allah knows best.

Written by Alimah Zainab Nakhuda

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham

References:

¹ Who is Musaafir – Darul Ifta Birmingham

² Mukhtasar Al Qudoori, page 38, Maktabah Shamelah

ومن خرج مسافرا صلى ركعتين إذا فارق بيوت المصر ولا يزال على حكم السفر حتى ينوي الإقامة في بلد خمسة عشر يوما فصاعدا فيلزمه الإتمام وإن نوى الإقامة أقل من ذلك لم يتم