Is accepting gifts from a client permissible?

A Muslim asked a pertinent question on whether collecting gift from a client is considered a bribe in Islam and The National UAE staff provided an apt and reasonable answer.

Question: I am an engineer. Sometimes clients offer me gifts upon completion of their projects. My company’s owner and president approves of it. Is it legally permissible in Islam?

Answer: Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.

In your case, it seems the gifts are being offered by clients as a gesture of thanks and appreciation. In this case, provided your company’s owner is aware and approves of such a practice, then it is permissible to take these gifts. Although it does not seem to apply to you, what is problematic with so-called gifts is when bribery is carried out under the same name. This is when an ulterior motive, often illegal, is disguised in the form of a gift. The criteria to distinguish between such fake and true gifts is that if they were otherwise revealed would they amount to a violation of ethics? This is considered a sin in Islam for obvious reasons and we leave you to know best what category of “gifts” yours falls into.