Apply for an Interest-Free Loan
In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise is due to God.
All peace and blessings upon His final Prophet Muhammad, his family, his companions, and all those who follow his way.
Before applying for an interest-free loan, we kindly advise you to:
Renew Your Intentions
Renew your intentions and make sincere prayers (dua’) in your daily ritual prayers and other blessed times for help and guidance from God. Pray the prayer of guidance (istikhaara) and be content with the path God facilitates for you – He wants better for you than you want for yourself.
Reflect
For educational loans, a number of applicants seem to jump into post-secondary schooling without thinking things through. Countless people graduate with degrees annually and do not use them due to many factors – they are then left with much debt and often no work. Before spending tens of thousands of dollars on a post-secondary program, we suggest you reflect on these questions: why am I pursuing this degree or certificate? What are the societal needs I am trying to fulfill? What other options do I have? Can I achieve my goals otherwise? How can I pay for schooling without falling into interest? Is this the right time for it or should I put it off for now?
There are many resources online such as www.uncollege.org that help people tap into their own potential without needing to rely on accreditation or degrees, where possible. We are not suggesting that post-secondary school is “wrong,” but that one should know very well what they are getting into and what their education will actually provides and does not provide. Many others have great reflections about the modern post-secondary system such as John Taylor Gatto (author of Weapons of Mass Instruction and this short letter), Chris Hedges, Noam Chomsky, and others.
For personal loans, reflect on the root causes of the need or emergency. Sometimes it is just a normal downturn in life, other times it can be misuse or mismanagement of funds, or wronging other people. If so, work hard to right those wrongs and seek forgiveness and repent. If you are considering buying a vehicle, sometimes more affordable vehicles have more blessings than more expensive ones.
For small business loans, we would do best to take our time and not rush. Haste is from the devil and we will get our portion of wealth that is destined for us whether we hurry or not. Instead of loans you may consider investments or partnerships.
For institutional loans, sometimes major capital projects are not needed nor are they wise when there is a better use of funds for projects of greater priority. Very often, funds used directly to support people and beneficial programs are of far greater value than those used to purchase or build physical buildings of brick and stone.
If you have thought long and hard about this decision and exhausted other avenues (see the FAQ below), and after weighing the benefits against the harms still believe it is best to get a loan then…
Seek Advice
Reach out to those you trust. There are many truly God-fearing scholars, elders, and mentors in our communities who have tremendous knowledge and wisdom and experience. Talk to a few of them who you trust and whose opinions you value. Ask for their sincere counsel and for their prayers; God may send His guidance on their tongues.
Consider Other Avenues
Approach other organizations for financial aid (see the Relief Organizations page) and check the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page for answers to common questions.
Trust in God
Rest assured that no matter what happens, God will facilitate the path that is best for you. Remember that God sees the big picture and He knows what is best in the long run. Your particular desire for a field of study or a business endeavour may not be what is in your best interest at this moment, or perhaps it is but as God’s will unfolds, a better path to it will be uncovered. What is certain is that He knows, and we do not. Trust in Him and He will reward your trust by taking care of you in ways you could not imagine. Let go and let God.
It may be that you hate a thing though it be good for you, and it may be that you love a thing though it be evil for you. God knows, and you know not.
Holy Qur’an (2:216)
All blessings and peace upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad.
All thanks are due to God, Lord of the worlds.
But those who struggle in Our cause, surely We shall guide them in Our ways; and God is with the good-doers.
Qur’an (29:69) - Arberry
Special consideration and priority is given to specific people in an attempt to be true to the Objectives of the Sacred Law or Maqasid Al-Sharia; a useful essay in this regard is the one by the esteemed scholar Dr. Umar Faruq Abd-Allah, Living Islam with Purpose
Sacred Sciences of Islam
Whether studying at reputable institutions such as: Zaytuna College in the US or Cambridge Muslim College in the UK – or graduates of such programs, or the institutions themselves. Similarly, programs like: Deen Intensive’s Rihla, Alim, Reviving the Islamic Spirit, Zawiyah at Rosales, Ta’leef, and similar efforts such as Classical Arabic Programs (e.g. Shariah Program).
General Financial Help
This includes people with difficult financial circumstances and who need help; especially those with particular circumstances like orphans, widows, people with disabilities, refugees, ex-convicts, people of color, indigenous brothers and sisters, immigrants etc. or people seeking to preform Hajj or Umrah, to cover urgent living or health expenses, or seeking to get married.
This also includes people who are trying hard to avoid interest or seek to repent from the major sin of interest or usury (i.e. riba): who beg God’s forgiveness and feel remorse for having fallen into it, who seek to get out of it, and wholeheartedly intend to live a life free from usury or interest.
If caught in heavy interest-based debt, see some of the organizations below in the FAQ section.
We pray that we are all granted Divine Facilitation to constantly make sincere repentance, to always avoid usury/interest and all sins, and to have meaningfully rich lives. It is reported that Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings upon him said,
The one who repents from a sin, is like the one who has no sin.
Ibn Majah, Tabarani, Abu Nu’aim, BayhaqiSpecific Visionaries
There are a thousand hacking at the branches of evil to one who is striking at the root.
Henry David ThoreauShaykh Hamza Yusuf on the Roots of Our Crisis.
We are in dire need of volunteers, activists, thinkers, and institutions who are wisely and intelligently working at reforming society, visionaries who see the pitfalls in our times and are helping us redefine the way we look at the world to develop more meaningful, purposeful, and harmonious lives and communities. Specifically those seeking to make balanced, grassroots, progressive change in the areas below among others. The point is to encourage ourselves and our applicants to renew our intentions and to focus efforts on the root causes of societal problems.
COMMUNITY
As we have become disconnected from our Sacred Traditions and traditional from the Earth and the sources of our nourishment, we have also become disconnected from each other – our families and communities continue to face enormous challenges. We seek to support initiatives that aim to restore the centrality of family and community to our lived experience of the Sacred Tradition of Islam. See some of the great work by Ta’leef and Tarjuma.
EDUCATION
A tremendous amount of work has been done by many people who show that the conventional mass schooling model typically used in the West is a failed or even harmful model and that alternative methods are far superior for individuals and society at large. For example, see the insightful of the late Mr. John Taylor Gatto, Sir Ken Robinson, John Holt (the father of modern homeschooling), Chris Hedges, Noam Chomsky, the documentary Race to Nowhere and many others.
FOOD – HEALTH – ENVIRONMENT
We believe that our bodies, minds, and hearts are sacred trusts and that their nourishment affects our health, states, actions, and the environment-at-large – we cannot separate our individual health from the health of the planet, we are all connected, and in the Islamic Tradition, this goes further as the states of our hearts and the purity of our deeds affects our bodies and our world. The organic and fair trade food movements have been increasing in popularity. Furthermore, much work is being done to help people understand the harms of the normal modern diet full of processed foods and artificial ingredients. For example, see the outstanding work of Dr. Robert Lustig in advocating against sugar, and the many documentaries that resulted from his work (like Fed Up) – similarly, Michael Pollan and others have worked tirelessly to help offset the harms of the modern diet. We seek to support people and causes that will help advance a holistic and honorable relationship between humanity and our sources of nourishment.
While there are many who would like to serve humanity in the capacity of medicine or health, there are relatively few who dig deep to get to root causes of modern health problems: for example, often there is little appreciation for holistic and traditional medicine and a dogmatic approach to ‘scientific medicine’ (see resources compiled by S.Hakim Archuletta and excellent research on the website of Sheikh Nuh Keller, and Shaykh Hamza Yusuf: Medicine and Islam – A Holistic Approach to Healthcare)
See this insightful critique of modern medicine by Zelicoff and Bellomo that discusses, among many things, a modern preference for high cost treatment when simpler, cheaper, more effective treatments are available. There is widespread corruption in the pharmaceutical industry (Sheikh Nuh Keller touches on this on his website). There are institutional problems specifically in the US with similar issues in other countries, see Sicko by Michael Moore, and then see some of the pioneering of organizations such as www.ummaclinic.org and www.muslimmeds.ca.
The point being: medical practitioners often only deal with micro band-aid solutions at the individual level; and while this may be good and praiseworthy, we are in dire need of critical thinking visionaries who can see through these colossal challenges and go to the roots of the problems and then advocate and dedicate themselves for solutions that will literally save and benefit hundreds of millions.
As for the environment as a whole, modern ways of living have had devastating affects on the entire planet including the land, air, and water we all share as well as specific harm to countless animal species. As stewards of the Earth, it is our sacred duty to restore the balance in the world such that we live in harmony with all creatures. For example, see what is being done by:
David Suzuki Foundation; Environmental Working Group; Environmental Defence; Council of Canadians, and many more. Many modern mass agricultural methods are harming each of us and eco-systems across the planet – see Cowspiracy. There is a renewed push for small-scale solutions and local food movements are taking way across the globe; see the permaculture movement and www.soilassociation.org. Similarly, what we wear has a tremendous impact on the world; the Organic Cotton movement, as part of the organic textile movement, is growing and needs much support, see the efforts of GOTS www.global-standard.org.
Then there are wide-spread use of chemicals and plastics in modern life, see Plastic Pollution Coalition and www.tappedmovie.com. Stephanie Soechtig’s team also made this great clip giving a tip of the iceberg of personal harm behind modern cosmetics (not to mention environmental harm!) – amazingly, they report, newborns are exposed to ~300 chemicals via the umbilical cord; 1100 chemicals are banned in the EU and still allowed in the US; of the 80,000 chemicals in use in the US only 200 have been tested for safety. That takes us into the wonderful world of scents, it is reported that “95% of chemicals used in scents are derived from petroleum” (i.e. the same stuff we put in our cars). This is really harmful for us, our children, animals, plants, air, water, and land – for more information, see: http://www.ewg.org/skindeep/myths-on-cosmetics-safety/ also see Story of Cosmetics.
May God grant us pure food and great health and a pristine environment on all levels. Ameen.
ECONOMICS
Iana in its entirety is one humble effort to help combat the widespread oppression by the modern economic systems. Much work is being done by other organizations to explore alternative local currencies, to advocate for credit unions over large banks, to prefer cash to over credit cards, and even to make a push for real currencies over cash. See the work of Bruce Livesey in Thieves of Bay Street, or the documentary Money as Debt, and many more. The inherent inequalities of modern economic systems hurt us all and lead to poverty and war – we need to do much more to raise awareness and to establish fair economic institutions and programs. We believe adherence to the principles of Islamic Finance will solve our problems.
Economics, aside from the purely financial side, is in effect a means to affect all other areas of life, if we appreciate that ethical spending is a way to vote with our dollars – which causes, companies, organizations, or concepts to support or not support. As such, there are many efforts in this regard such as:
By trying to be careful and intentional in how we spend our money, we can help reform our world on many levels including the environment, human rights, child welfare, animal rights, and more. While Iana does not fully endorse any of these works in their entirety, they are providing tremendously beneficial services to help people be more ethical in their spending and to avoid being complicit in human and environmental injustice.
There is much work being done here, on ethical earning and spending, and the over-arching Islamic Economic System by Dr. Adi Setia and others as highlighted in the international Journal for Islamic Sciences.
Journalism & Media
Honest and courageous journalism and media help safeguard and protect the rights of the oppressed and disenfranchised and make the world a better place. See some of the great work by Real News Network, Democracy Now, National Observer, the Intercept, and many more.
Indigenous Peoples
Indigenous communities in Canada and across the world have suffered over the centuries and many sincere efforts are aimed at righting the wrongs of the past and reconciliation. See some of the works of John Ralston Saul and Dr. Howard Johnson among many others who seek to support the healthy renew
Other areas include:
- Law, Pro-Peace/Anti-War, Human Rights, Animal Rights, Politics
- Culture, such as: Baraka blue
God singles out for His mercy whom He will; God is of bounty abounding.
Quran 2:105Please read the IANA's disclaimer about references to other organizations.
No, there are no hidden fees. There are no administrative fees, no late fees, or any other fees. Borrowers are given loans in good faith and required to pay back only what they borrow, not a penny more. Borrowers may pay fees to third parties in order to transfer funds to Iana (e.g., to mail cheques or to send wire transfers). Iana does not make ANY profit. Any donations or gifts given to Iana go to help advance Iana’s work and to providing more interest-free loans – no strings attached. By the grace of God, Iana is a community service that is entirely run by volunteers who cover all administrative fees.
Yes, international applicants are eligible and have been awarded loans. However, preference goes to those from Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, then other applicants from Canada, the United States, and Europe, then other countries. What is more important than geographic considerations is giving a loan to the right person for the right reasons. See our Award Philosophy for more information. You can also explore the many other organizations that provide support on page for Relief Organizations.
- Iana Learn is for educational loans, tuition, and other expenses related to pursuing studies or to paying off existing student loans.
- Iana Personal is for emergency or short-term loans for those who have urgent needs or unanticipated expenses (e.g. dental, medical, auto, etc.) as well as important vehicle purchases, or home renovations.
- Iana Independence is to help small businesses get on their feet or expand their operations.
- Iana Community is for non-profit organizations and institutions and their work.
- First, email us the answers to the preliminary application questions. You may not receive an answer at all or for an extended period of time due to the volume of emails we receive. If pre-approved, you will, insha’Allah (God-willing) be asked to proceed to the following step.
- Second, submit the final application forms and all required documentation. Loans are given directly to the applicant (not to parents, schools or outside agencies). All additional information must be supplied for the committee to consider your application.
- Third, a personal interview will be required as well as reference checks.
- Finally, if any requirements are not satisfied or documentation is missing, the application may be denied.
Applications are reviewed through a rigorous process devised by Islamic and Western finance experts. The process is a combination of a thorough application review, documentation, reference checks, an interview, potentially a credit check, praying for guidance or istikhara and more; all to try to ensure the applicants are responsible, trustworthy, prudent, competent and will inshaAllah (God-willing) successfully repay their loans so that others may in turn be given loans.
There are many reasons why an application may be denied but the most common reason stems from basic logistics of cash-flow needs, depending on the loan amount requested and its duration. This must be measured against the needs of the community members who have entrusted Iana by lending their savings (e.g. for Hajj, a home, children’s education, retirement, etc.). In addition to this, it is very difficult to weigh various applications while also considering things like: the strength and merit of the application, the perceived individual needs along with societal benefit, and the character of the applicant (e.g., honesty and competence). Other factors also play a role. For instance, when an application lacks information or does not list a guarantor, it is less likely to be approved. We hope you understand and ask you to pray that Allah enables us to give and withhold in accordance with His Pleasure.
Loan applications may be rejected for the following reasons:
- Incomplete application or missing supporting documents
- Insufficient funds available
- Disagreement in establishing repayment schedule
- Guarantors unwilling to co-sign (if applicable)
- Poor judgement or poor character displayed by applicant
- Other reasons deemed appropriate by Iana Financial
Please note that the funds Iana has are a trust from those who have donated or loaned money to Iana, as such, we are fully accountable for the responsible management of these funds. We take our role seriously and have both a right and responsibility to deny an application at our discretion.
Applications are accepted year-round, on a rolling basis. There is no deadline for submitting an application. Once an application is submitted, the response will, inshā’Allah, be given as soon as possible. Please plan accordingly and submit your request early, while continuing to explore and pursue other options.
Loans may be given within days, weeks, or months depending on many factors. We ask you to keep in mind that Iana is a volunteer team with no paid staff. We do our best to process applications as best we can.
Iana Financial highly depends upon the repayment of loans in order to continue to help people meet their needs. It is important that applicants recognize there is a moral obligation as well as a legal obligation to repay any loan that he or she may receive. As such, signing the loan agreement is required to ensure the terms are clear to both parties. For accountability and practicality, a loan repayment plan is set on a case-by-case basis.
Delays in repayment place a burden on Iana and delay much-needed help to others who are applying for loans. As such, we strongly emphasize the need for borrowers to honourably fulfill their contractual repayment plans. However, as long as notice is given and an exceptional situation is explained, a rare late payment would simply be deferred. There are never any late fees.
Repeatedly missing payments may result in the loan defaulting. In this case, guarantors will be contacted to resume payments and if this is unsuccessful, Iana will take the case to arbitration. If the borrower is uncooperative, Iana may make the case public in order to help recover funds, or may take legal action to recover Iana Financial’s (i.e. the community’s) assets.
However, we try to mitigate this as much as possible by being careful in how we select borrowers in the first place. The front-end work — a thorough application and vetting process — will, inshā’Allah, protect against this eventuality. By the grace of God, we do our utmost and rely on Him all the while.
The guarantor is fully liable to repay the entire loan or whatever balance remains in case the borrower is unable to fulfill their contractual obligations or if the borrower is unwilling to renegotiate their loan repayment plan in the case of default. The guarantor should have a high level of confidence that the borrower is an upright, honest, and competent person who will do everything they can to honour their word.
Step 1: Preliminary Application
Please answer all questions as applicable and email the relevant form, linked below, to applications@ianafinancial.org. If eligible, you will inshaAllah be asked to proceed to submit a full application. For very urgent applications, submit everything in Steps 1 and 2 immediately.
- Download the Preliminary Application for a small, short-term, Personal/Emergency loan
- Download the Preliminary Application for an Educational loan via Iana Learn
- Download the Preliminary Application for a Business or Institutional loan via Iana Independence or Iana Community.
Step 2: Final Interest-Free Loan Application
- Email completed forms to applications@ianafinancial.org
- OR
- Mail completed forms to Iana Financial, P.O. Box 61027 Delton, Edmonton, Alberta T5E 6J6, Canada