Is it permissible for one who has sufficiency (kifayah) to accept payment for bearing witness?
General Chapter
Al-Mughni
Book of Testimonies
Primary text
It is not permissible for one who has sufficiency to accept compensation (*ja'l*) for bearing witness, because bearing witness is the performance of a communal obligation (*fard kifayah*). If some members of the community fulfill a communal obligation, it is discharged by them. If one does not have sufficiency, and the witness duty is not specifically assigned to him, then it is permissible for him to accept payment. Since providing maintenance (*nafaqah*) for one's dependents is an individual obligation (*fard ayn*), one should not engage in a communal obligation to the exclusion of an individual one. If one accepts wages while fulfilling both, this combines both matters.
Supporting text
If bearing witness becomes specifically obligatory (*ta'ayyun*) for someone, there is a possibility that accepting payment is permissible, and another possibility that it is impermissible, lest one accept compensation for performing an individual obligation. The Shafi'i school holds that accepting payment is impermissible for the one upon whom it is specifically incumbent, and they hold two differing views on whether it is permissible for others.