فِقهُ صُكُوكِ الإِجَارَة — الصُّكُوكُ المَدعُومَةُ بِالإِيجَار: كَيفَ تَستَخدِمُ الحُكُومَاتُ وَالشَّرِكَاتُ الإِيجَارَ لِإِصدَارِ السَّنَدَاتِ الإِسلَامِيَّةِ وَالهَيكَلُ المَعيَارِيُّ لِشَرِكَةِ الغَرَضِ الخَاصِّ وَالجَدَلُ المُستَمِرُّ حَولَ النَّقلِ الحَقِيقِيِّ لِلأَصوَل
Fiqh Sukuk al-Ijarah (فِقهُ صُكُوكِ الإِجَارَة — Jurisprudence of Lease-Backed Sukuk; sukuk = plural of sakk = certificate [the origin of the English 'check']; sukuk are investment certificates representing undivided ownership in an asset or pool of assets; sukuk al-ijarah = the most widely issued type, representing ownership of a leased asset or usufruct; AAOIFI Shari'ah Standard 17 governs sukuk; the global sukuk market exceeded USD 800 billion in outstanding issuance by 2024; sukuk al-ijarah structure: [1] originator [sovereign or corporate] sells identified assets to a Special Purpose Vehicle [SPV]; [2] SPV issues certificates [sukuk] to investors representing undivided ownership in those assets; [3] SPV leases the assets back to the originator for a defined rental payment; [4] rental payments flow through to sukuk holders as periodic returns; [5] at maturity, the originator repurchases the assets from the SPV [using a purchase undertaking]; [6] investors receive par value from the asset repurchase; major issuers include Malaysia, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Indonesia, Turkey, and a growing number of non-Muslim sovereign borrowers including the UK [2014 HM Treasury sukuk], Germany, and Luxembourg; debate: critics argue that purchase undertakings [wa'ad al-shira'] make sukuk functionally equivalent to interest-bearing bonds and not genuinely asset-backed) is the foundation of the global sukuk market.
The Standard Structure
Step 1 — Asset transfer: The sovereign or corporate originator identifies real, revenue-generating assets (government buildings, airports, toll roads, land). These are sold to an SPV at fair market value.
Step 2 — Certificate issuance: The SPV issues sukuk certificates to investors in the capital markets. Each certificate represents an undivided ownership interest in the SPV’s asset pool.
Step 3 — Lease-back: The SPV immediately leases the assets back to the originator. The originator pays rent (typically pegged to SOFR or a similar benchmark plus a spread).
Step 4 — Rental payments: Rental payments flow through the SPV to sukuk holders as periodic returns.
Step 5 — Maturity: A purchase undertaking (wa’ad bil-shira’) allows the originator to buy back the assets from the SPV at par, giving investors their principal.
The Shari’ah Debate
Critical argument (Sheikh Muhammad Taqi Usmani, 2007): Most sukuk do not involve genuine asset transfer. The purchase undertaking at par — guaranteeing the originator can always buy back at the original price — means the “sale” is functionally a secured loan. The rent is functionally interest. This led AAOIFI to issue tighter standards in 2008.
Majority practice: AAOIFI Standard 17 permits purchase undertakings at market value (not par); the distinction between par-value and market-value undertakings is the current dividing line between acceptable and unacceptable sukuk structures among Shari’ah scholars.
See also: Fiqh Al Ijarah, Fiqh Al Ijarah Al Mawsufah Fi Al Dhimma, Fiqh Al Musharaka Al Mutanaqisa, Fiqh Al Gharar, Fiqh Al Kafalah