Assalaamu alaykum dear scholars. My question is the following: If a person saves money in order to perform the Hajj for his deceased brother (he has performed his own Hajj) but later on plans for IVF from this money as he has no child, then what should he give preference to? Perform hajj or go for IVF?

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

If you can only do one of the two matters and it is not possible for you to combine both of them, then, in our view, seeking to have children takes priority over performing Hajj on behalf of someone else. This is because seeking to have children is one of the main objectives of marriage and is a right of each spouse on the other. It is a matter that is generally recommended in the sharee'ah, as the Prophet, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, said, “Marry the friendly and prolific women, as I will outnumber the nations by you [by your abundant number].” [Abu Daawood, An-Nasaa’i and others]

Besides, the benefits of having children are greater than the benefits of performing Hajj on behalf of the dead. Also, even if performing Hajj on behalf of the dead is permissible, it is not something that is specifically recommended in the sharee'ah.

For more benefit, please refer to fataawa 84882 and 90034.

Allaah knows best.