Avoiding taxes by using the system’s loopholes : avoiding declaring custom-taxable items

Fatawa Question

Assalamu Alaikum, brothers and sisters in Islam. I would like to have the scholar's opinion in this point. In my country owning, a receiver means paying a certain amount of fee annually to the government, which is not done in any other country as far as I know. My family in Sudan do not want to pay this amount of money to the government because the government has no right in asking for it in the first place, and in Sudan life is tough so you have to hang on to your money as much as you can. So what my parents did, who live in Saudi Arabia, was smuggle the receiver into Sudan from Saudi Arabia and give it to our family here. The government does not know about the receiver therefore my family does not pay anything to the government. In case the government finds out that they haven't been paying these fees they will confiscate the receiver from my family. When I sort of brought up this topic with my father, he said they are thieves-meaning the government-because they are taking fees that they are not supposed to take. So my question for you is, I know that smuggling must undoubtedly be Haram in Islam, but in this case is it excusable or not ??? Then I want to ask about not paying the fees, is it excusable considering the fact that the government has no right in asking for this money in the first place ??? Lastly, I want to know if anything that my family knows or takes from the receiver i.e., information and any useful thing from the receiver's channels is Haram in case you decide that the possession of this receiver is Haram to begin with, considering the fact that what is based on Haram, is Haram all the way. If they have committed wrong , please show me how they could make up for their sins Islamically. Thank you, Jazakumullaho Khairan. Assalamu Alaikum Wa Rahmatu Allah Wa Barakatuh.

Fatwa

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Publication Date

2002-09-25

Main Subjects

Economics & Business Administration
Financial and Accounting Sciences
Islamic Studies

Topics

• Islamic jurisprudence
• Taxes
• Administrative fees
• Commissions

No. of Pages

2

Data Type

Fatawa

Language

English

Record ID

BIM-726920

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• AMA