I borrowed some money from the US government; interest free, to go to school. After I graduated, I moved back to my home country, which is Muslim and poor. My plan was to quickly find a job and pay back my debt. Now 6 months since I moved back, I still cannot find a Halal job. Moreover, after I surveyed the job market here, the salaries available are so low that it would be impossible for me to pay off my loans in the required time. My question is: Is it permissible for me to move back to the US temporarily and try to find a Halal job there to be able to pay off my debt given that I am not married!

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.

We have discussed thoroughly the ruling of staying in a non-Muslim country in our previous Fatawa: for details, please read the Fatawa: 81642 and 81464.

Therefore, we urge our brother to spare no effort to find a job in his country or any other Muslim country and not to travel to a country where evil is widespread as that will surely affect him badly.

Know that taking loan from anyone is permissible if it does not contain Riba and does not affect the religion of the person. Also, repaying a loan cannot be an excuse to commit sins.

Allah knows best.