Question:

What do the scholars and experts of shari’ah say regarding my situation? I own a printing press company and one of my clients based in Africa has asked me to print a book for him. However, the publisher of this book is from an Arab country. The book also has copyright protection. A request for a large quantity of books has been made which will reap a high revenue. Most of the printing press partners are happy to print the books. Is it permissible for us to print these books?

Answer:

All perfect praise is for Allah ﷻ, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah ﷻ, and that Prophet Muhammad ﷺ is His Messenger.

In the scenario presented it is clear that the original book in question has copyright protection. It will be impermissible to print this on one’s own accord. Moreover, printing this without the author’s permission will be an infringement upon the author’s rights. Any profits made from the sales of these books will be haram.

Allah ﷻ knows best

This fatwa is written by Dr Hafiz Muhammad Munir al-Azhari