Islamic Account Checklist — 12 Questions Before You Fund

Score this account

1. Is there ANY overnight charge — by any name?

Ask: "Will my account be charged any fee for positions held overnight, regardless of what the fee is called — swap, rollover, admin fee, financing fee, holding fee, currency conversion fee?" A genuinely swap-free account answers "no charge of any kind for holding positions, regardless of duration."

2. Is there a maximum hold period before fees kick in?

Some وسطاء offer سواب-مجاني for 5-14 days only. After that, swaps apply. This is structurally a deferred سواب — useful for day المتداولون but problematic for swing المتداولون. Ask for the explicit hold period.

3. Are the spreads identical to قياسي حسابات?

If the إسلامي حساب has noticeably wider spreads, the وسيط has built the سواب revenue into the spread. Structurally still a financing component, just hidden. Check by comparing the live spreads side by side.

4. Is the commission per لوت the same as on a قياسي ECN حساب?

A وسيط that offers a سواب-مجاني ECN حساب at $7/لوت instead of $7/لوت has done it cleanly. A وسيط charging $14/لوت has loaded the cost. Compare to the قياسي ECN حساب commission.

5. Is سواب-مجاني available on all instruments — or only الفوركس majors?

Some وسطاء only remove swaps on EUR/USD, GBP/USD, USD/JPY etc., but keep them on metals, indices, and crypto CFDs. If you صفقة gold or indices, this matters. Get the full list of سواب-مجاني instruments.

6. Is there a "negative balance protection" guarantee?

If a sharp السوق gap leaves your حساب below zero, who covers the negative balance? On most regulated وسطاء it is automatically zeroed out. On some unregulated وسطاء, you owe the وسيط the negative balance — which crosses into a debt with riba implications. Get this in writing.

7. What is the broker's regulation?

Top-مستوى regulation (FCA in UK, ASIC in Australia, CySEC in EU, DFSA in Dubai) means حقيقي client money segregation, حقيقي complaints procedures, حقيقي audit. Offshore-only regulation (St. Vincent, Vanuatu, Marshall Islands) means you have very limited recourse if anything goes wrong — and recourse-less صفقات have additional gharar concerns.

8. Are client funds segregated from the broker's own funds?

If the broker uses your money for their own operations, the situation looks structurally like a loan you didn't agree to — and the broker pays themselves an implicit interest on it. Segregated accounts mean your money sits in a separate banking facility that the broker cannot touch for their own use.

9. Does the وسيط certify Shariah compliance externally?

Some brokers have their Islamic accounts certified by recognized Shariah supervisory boards (AAOIFI-aligned scholars, Bahrain Shariah Review Bureau, etc.). External certification is not a guarantee — but it is a stronger signal than the broker's marketing claim alone.

10. Is there a maximum leverage cap?

Many scholars advise lower leverage (1:30 or 1:50) for Islamic accounts to reduce gharar. A broker that offers 1:1000 on its "Islamic" account has either misunderstood or doesn't care. Look for brokers that cap Islamic-account leverage at lower-than-standard levels.

11. What is the broker's stance on hedging and EAs?

Some وسطاء ban Expert Advisors (EAs) and hedging on إسلامي حسابات. This is fine. Others permit them but treat them differently from قياسي حسابات — sometimes adding extra fees. Understand the operational rules before funding.

12. What documentation will I receive on حساب opening?

Ask for the إسلامي حساب الشروط in writing before you sign. Read them. If the الشروط include any reference to interest, financing charges, or rollover compensation, the حساب is not what is being marketed. A clean إسلامي حساب agreement is short and explicit on the absence of these elements.