Guidelines on seeking permission to enter
Question

                We are asking if you could clarify the correct understanding and implementation of seeking permission to enter homes and properties in accordance with the orders of Allah and the sunnah of His Messenger صَلَى الله عليهِ وسَلَّم and if this differs according to Urf or local custom or is the same for all of the Muslims.

In Surah Al-Nur 27-29 Allah mentions how to seek permission and enter the homes, and the exceptions. We are asking if you can explain these ayat and regarding two points in specific. One being what are the places or homes that are "not lived in" and what are the rules or limits of entering them when they have owners who are known.

There are homes that some may only use in certain seasons or times of the year like the summers or winters, or only for special occasions, like family gatherings or weddings. Also what about land like farm land or homes which are under construction and that are not yet lived in, or warehouses equipment or livestock?
Can these properties be entered without the permission of the caretakers, guards, or owners simply because they are not used daily or lived in by families, or must the people still seek permission from the owners or caretakers to enter them?Also some have said that by custom if the gate or door to a property or home is left open, for some reason, that no permission is needed to enter, is this a correct understanding according to either local custom or Islamicly ?
Praise be to Allah.
	There are guidelines on seeking permission to enter which are 
	fixed and do not change. They include the following:

	-1-

	Not looking inside the house before permission to enter is 
	given. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: It is 
	not permissible for a Muslim to look inside any house until he has been 
	given permission.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari in al-Adab al-Mufrad 
	(1093); classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.

	The requirement to seek permission to enter has been enjoined 
	so as to prevent looking, as the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be 
	upon him) said: Seeking permission is enjoined only so as to prevent 
	looking.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6241).

	-2-

	Saying salaam before asking permission to enter. It was 
	narrated that Rib‘i said: A man from Banu ‘Aamir told us that he asked 
	permission to enter upon the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon 
	him) when he was in a house. He said: May I get in? The Prophet (blessings 
	and peace of Allah be upon him) said to his servant: “Go out to this man and 
	teach him how to ask permission to enter. Say to him: Say: As-salaamu 
	alaykum, may I come in?” The man heard him and said: As-salaamu alaykum, may 
	I come in? The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) gave him 
	permission and he came in.

	Narrated by Abu Dawood (5177); classed as saheeh by 
	al-Albaani.

	With regard to the verse in which Allah, may He be exalted, 
	says (interpretation of the meaning):

	“O you who believe! Enter not 
	houses other than your own, until you have asked permission and greeted 
	those in them; that is better for you, in order that you may remember”

	[an-Noor 24:27],
	

	the conjunction “and” does not imply sequence; perhaps the 
	fact that seeking permission is mentioned first is to highlight its 
	importance, and does not mean that this is to be done first. Al-Baghawi said 
	in his Tafseer (3/398): The scholars differed as to whether seeking 
	permission or greeting should come first. Some said that seeking permission 
	should come first, so one should say: “May I enter? As-salaamu ‘alaykum”, 
	because Allah, may He be exalted, says, “until 
	you have asked permission and greeted those in them.” 
	But the majority are of the view that the greeting should come first, so one 
	should say: As-salaamu ‘alaykum, may I enter? End quote.

	-3-

	Knocking on the door or ringing the bell, and so on, take the 
	place of asking permission verbally, and opening the door by remote means 
	takes the place of giving permission, if the visitor knows that they opened 
	the door for him.

	-4-

	It is essential to mention one’s name if the people inside 
	the house ask who is there. It was narrated that Jaabir ibn ‘Abdullah (may 
	Allah be pleased with him) said: I came to the Prophet (blessings and peace 
	of Allah be upon him) and knocked on the door, and he said: “Who is there?” 
	I said: It’s me. And he said: “Me, me?” as if he disliked that, Narrated by 
	al-Bukhaari (6250).

	That is because if the one who is seeking permission to enter 
	says “It’s me,” he is not properly identifying himself.

	-5-

	It is Sunnah not to stand facing the door, so that one’s gaze 
	will not fall upon anything inside the house. Rather one should stand to one 
	side of the door, either on the right or left. It was narrated from Talhah 
	that Huzayl said: A man came and stood at the door of the Prophet (blessings 
	and peace of Allah be upon him), asking permission to enter, and he stood at 
	the door – ‘Uthmaan said: facing the door. The Prophet (blessings and peace 
	of Allah be upon him) said: ““(Stand) like this or like this (i.e., to one 
	side or other of the door), for seeking permission is enjoined only so as to 
	prevent looking.” Narrated by Abu Dawood (5174); classed as saheeh by 
	al-Albaani. It says in ‘Awn al-Ma‘bood: That is, he should step away 
	from the door, and face some other direction. End quote.

	-6-

	One should seek permission to enter three times, unless he is 
	certain or thinks it most likely that the people inside the house did not 
	hear him. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: “If 
	one of you seeks permission to enter three times but is not given 
	permission, let him go back.” Narrated by al-Bukhaari (6245).

	An-Nawawi said in al-Majmoo‘ (4/622): If he is sure 
	that they did not hear him, because the place is far away or the like, then 
	what appears to be the case is that there is nothing wrong with trying more 
	than that. The hadith applies to one who does not think that they did not 
	hear him. End quote.

	-7-

	If the owner of the house is known to have given permission 
	or there is any indication to that effect, that may be acted upon, such as 
	if he has opened the door or put a light on. It was narrated that Ibn 
	Mas‘ood said: The Messenger of Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon 
	him) said to me: “Your permission to enter upon me is when the curtain is 
	raised, or when you hear me speaking quietly, unless I forbid you.” Narrated 
	by Muslim (2169).

	-8-

	One should not seek permission to enter aggressively, or bang 
	on the door or ring the bell aggressively, because that is rude and is not 
	polite. It was narrated that Anas ibn Maalik said: People used to knock on 
	the doors of the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) with 
	their fingernails. Narrated by al-Bukhaari in al-Adab al-Mufrad 
	(1080). Classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.

	-9-

	If a person is not given permission to enter, he should go 
	back without getting upset, because Allah, may He be exalted, says 
	(interpretation of the meaning):

	“And if you are asked to go 
	back, go back, for it is purer for you”

	[an-Noor 24:28].

	-10-

	The requirement to seek permission to enter is waived in 
	cases of necessity, such as rescuing someone or preventing an evil when 
	action cannot be delayed, such as cases of murder or adultery, or raiding 
	places of immorality or places where alcohol is produced.

	-11-

	The requirement to seek permission to enter is not waived if 
	the people are not in the house, because Allah, may He be exalted, says 
	(interpretation of the meaning):

	“And if you find no one therein, 
	still, enter not until permission has been given”

	[an-Noor 24:28]. 
	

	If the house is being built, then no permission is required 
	as in the case of houses that are locked up, because they do not come under 
	the same protection and prohibition on looking at what is inside them. But 
	one should not enter them if they are surrounded by a fence and the like. It 
	says in Kashshaaf al-Qinaa‘ (3/161):

	Otherwise it is prohibited to enter the property of someone 
	else without his permission, if he is the owner of the land  that has been 
	fenced off, because that is interfering with the property of another person 
	without his permission. Otherwise if it has not been fenced off, it is 
	permissible to enter without his permission and without causing damage, 
	because the fact that he did not fence it off implies permission. End quote.

	-12-

	Permission from someone other than the owner of the house is 
	of no significance, unless it is known verbally or customarily that the 
	owner of the house allows him to give permission, such as a minor when it is 
	known, explicitly or implicitly, that his giving permission is acceptable to 
	the owner of the house. Anas ibn Maalik was below the age of puberty, and 
	people would ask him for permission to enter the house of the Messenger of 
	Allah (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him). The Companions (may Allah 
	be pleased with them) did likewise with their sons and slaves. End quote 
	from Tafseer al-Qurtubi (12/220).

	-13-

	The necessity to seek permission also includes visitors and 
	those who are invited, unless there is clear indication of permission to 
	enter, such as if the door is open or if the envoy who was sent to invite 
	someone comes with that invited guest. The Prophet (blessings and peace of 
	Allah be upon him) said: “If one of you is invited and he comes with the 
	envoy who was sent to invite him, then that is his permission to enter.” 
	Narrated by al-Bukhaari in al-Adab al-Mufrad in a chapter entitled: 
	Chapter: An invitation to a man is permission to enter (1075). Classed as 
	saheeh by al-Albaani.

	Nevertheless, seeking permission to enter in this case is 
	preferable. Al-Haleemi said: Seeking permission to enter in this case is 
	preferable, because circumstances may have changed. End quote from Shu‘ab 
	al-Eemaan (11/224).

	Al-Haleemi’s view is supported by the report narrated by al-Bukhaari 
	(6246) from Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) who said: I entered 
	with the Messenger (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) [the house of 
	the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)] and he found some 
	milk in a vessel, so he said: “O Abu Hirr [Abu Hurayrah], go to Ahl as-Suffah 
	and call them to me.” So I went to them and called them, and they came and 
	asked permission to enter; he gave them permission and they entered.

	-14-

	If someone enters before being granted permission to do so, 
	it is permissible to make him leave. It was narrated from Kaladah ibn Hanbal 
	that Safwaan ibn Umayyah sent him to the Messenger of Allah (blessings and 
	peace of Allah be upon him) with some milk, young gazelle meat and small 
	cucumbers, when the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was 
	in the upper part of Makkah. I entered but I did not say salaam. He said: 
	“Go back and say: ‘As-salaamu ‘alaykum.’” Narrated by Abu Dawood (5176); 
	classed as saheeh by al-Albaani.

	And Allah knows best.