[Q 649] Dropshipping as an Agent

QUESTION:

I have recently heard a different ruling from someone regarding dropshipping, please could you clarify if this is Ja’iz:

“Dropshipping would be permissible in the case where the seller informs the buyer, or states it somewhere in the item listing, that they are an agent and do not own the product”.

ANSWER:

Dropshipping in which a person purchases an item and then sells it onward before taking Qabdah (possession) of it is impermissible and sinful.

One Shari‘ah-compliant solution is to work as a Commission Agent. In dropshipping, or in any other permissible business, if a person facilitates the sale of the original owner’s goods as a Commission Agent and receives a commission according to prevailing custom (‘Urf), then such work is permissible. In other words, the Commission Agent will receive commission from the original owner in return for his effort and work in convincing a customer and facilitating the sale of the item.

In this arrangement, even if it is not disclosed to the customer that he is merely an agent and not the owner of the item, there is still no harm, and it is permissible to work without informing the customer. If he does inform the customer, that is also permissible.

However, since the intermediary is acting only as a Commission Agent, all proceeds of the sale, regardless of the sale price, rightfully belong to the original owner. The agent is not entitled to any portion of the sale proceeds themselves. He is entitled only to his commission for the work he has carried out, and that commission should be according to prevailing custom (‘Urf), meaning the amount commonly paid in the market for such services.

Answered by: Mubashir Attari (AskMufti Scholar)
Verified by: Mufti Sajid Attari
Translated answer
Date: 8th June 2026.