Detailed ruling on appointing a proxy for tawaaf or sa‘i
Question

                There is a woman who did ‘Umrah. She circumambulated the Ka‘bah (did tawaaf), but she was unable to do sa‘i; someone else did the entire sa‘i on her behalf. Is this valid, and what is the ruling on it?
Praise be to Allah.
    With regard to appointing a proxy for some 
    of the actions of Hajj and ‘Umrah, the ruling varies according to the 
    situation of the one who appoints the proxy. 

    Firstly: 

    The basic principle as stated by the 
    fuqaha’ is as follows: 

    1.    
    
    In cases where one is able to do the actions

    2.    
    
    or in cases where it is possible that the reason that is 
    preventing one from doing tawaaf or sa‘i may cease, even if that is in the 
    future

    3.    
    
    or in cases where it is possible to hire someone or seek 
    the help of someone to carry the sick or incapacitated person and do tawaaf 
    with him, 

    In all these cases, it is not valid to 
    appoint a proxy to do tawaaf or  sa‘i on their behalf, and it is not 
    permissible to do so. With regard to physical acts of worship, each Muslim 
    is obliged to do them and will be called to account for them before Allah. 
    That cannot be passed onto a proxy except in the case of a legitimate shar‘i 
    excuse, especially – as Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on him) said – 
    when the time for tawaaf and sa‘i cannot be missed, unlike the time for 
    stoning the Jamaraat. 

    See: Majmoo‘ Fataawa Ibn Baaz 
    (16/86) 

    It says in Haashiyat Qalyoobi 
    (2/139): 

    Tawaaf, standing (in ‘Arafah), sa‘i and 
    shaving the head cannot be done by a proxy.

    End quote. 

    Ibn Hajar al-Haytami (may Allah have mercy 
    on him) was asked: 

    Is it valid to appoint a proxy for tawaaf 
    and recitation of Qur’an? 

    He replied: 

    It is not valid to appoint a proxy for 
    tawaaf to go and do it by himself, except in the case of one who hires 
    someone to do that, subject to certain conditions.

    End quote from al-Fataawa al-Fiqhiyyah 
    al-Kubra (2/130) 

    Al-‘Allaamah as-Sa‘di (may Allah have 
    mercy on him) said: 

    They stated that the one who is unable to 
    do tawaaf or sa‘i may be carried, but they did not clearly state that it is 
    permissible to appoint a proxy except in the case of stoning the Jamaraat.

    End quote from al-Ajwabah an-Naafi‘ah 
    (p. 372) 

    Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem (may Allah 
    have mercy on him) said: 

    If a pilgrim from Jeddah falls sick, he 
    may be carried and taken for tawaaf and sa‘i in a wheelchair and the like, 
    or he may be carried if he is unable to do tawaaf and sa‘i 
    walking.                                   

    End quote from Majmoo‘ Fataawa wa 
    Rasaa’il Samaahat ash-Shaykh Muhammad ibn Ibraaheem (may Allah have 
    mercy on him) (6/60) 

    The Standing Committee (10/271) was asked 
    the following question: 

    Is it permissible for me to appoint 
    someone to do tawaaf al-ifaadah (tawaaf during Hajj) and tawaaf al-wadaa‘ 
    (farewell tawaaf) on my behalf if I am not able to go back to Makkah al-Mukarramah 
    because I am very old and in poor health? 

    The Committee replied: 

    It is not permissible to appoint a proxy 
    to do tawaaf al-ifaadah or the farewell tawaaf. The one who is incapacitated 
    may be carried to do tawaaf. You have no option but to come to Makkah. End 
    quote. 

    ‘Abd al-‘Azeez ibn Baaz, ‘Abd al-‘Azeez 
    Aal ash-Shaykh, Saalih al-Fawzaan, Bakr Abu Zayd 

    Secondly: 

    If a person is completely unable to do the 
    actions of Hajj or ‘Umrah, or he has a chronic illness because of which he 
    is unable to complete the rituals without extraordinary difficulty, then in 
    that case there is nothing wrong with him appointing someone else to 
    complete the rituals on his behalf. But that is subject to two important 
    conditions: 

    1.    
    
    that the reason for his incapacity or difficulty is 
    sickness or an impediment from which there is no hope of recovery with time. 
    If there is the hope that the impediment will disappear with rest, taking 
    medicine and the like, or it is a temporary incapacity resulting from an 
    emergency, then it is not permissible to appoint a proxy under any 
    circumstances.

    2.    
    
    that it is not easy for the incapacitated person to do 
    tawaaf or sa‘i by being carried, such as if his illness is severe or he will 
    become dizzy or faint if he is carried, or there is no one who can carry 
    him. If there is someone who can help him or if he has money with which to 
    hire someone to take him for tawaaf and sa‘i, then it is not acceptable for 
    him to appoint a proxy. 

    The evidence that it is permissible to 
    appoint a proxy in that case, if these two conditions are met, is the 
    hadeeth of Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) about the Khath‘ami 
    woman who said: O Messenger of Allah, Allah’s command to His slaves to 
    perform Hajj has come when my father is an old man and cannot sit firmly on 
    his mount; can I do Hajj on his behalf? He said: “Yes.” That happened during 
    the Farewell Pilgrimage. Narrated by al-Bukhaari (1513) and Muslim (1334).  
    If it is permissible to appoint a proxy for the entire pilgrimage in the 
    case of complete incapacitation, then it is more appropriate that it should 
    be permissible to appoint a proxy for some of the actions of the 
    pilgrimage. 

    Imam ar-Ramli (may Allah have mercy on 
    him) was asked about a pilgrim who did not do tawaaf al-ifaadah, then he 
    came back to Egypt, for example, then he became completely incapacitated, 
    meeting the conditions mentioned. Is it permissible for him to appoint a 
    proxy to do this tawaaf or any other essential or obligatory part of the 
    pilgrimage? 

    He replied: 

    It is permissible for him to do that; in 
    fact it is obligatory for him, because if it is permissible to appoint a 
    proxy for all of the rituals, then it is more appropriate that it should be 
    permissible to do so for some of them. 

    We cannot say that the pilgrimage is a 
    physical act of worship so a person cannot build upon the actions of another 
    person in this regard, because he is regarded as having exited ihram if he 
    dies or completes the rituals, but in the case of one who is incapacitated, 
    then another person may build on his actions and complete the pilgrimage on 
    his behalf. 

    The scholars said that a guardian may 
    enter ihram on behalf of a child who has reached the age of discernment, a 
    child who has not reached that age, or one who is insane, and do what each 
    of them is incapable of doing. 

    In these two cases, the supererogatory 
    rituals will be completed by proxy. Furthermore, there is no sin on the one 
    who did not complete them. The Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon 
    him) said: “If I instruct you to do something, then do as much of it as you 
    can.” Moreover, that which is possible is not waived because of that which 
    is difficult. 

    They also said that if a person is unable 
    to stone the Jamaraat at the appropriate time, it is obligatory for him to 
    appoint a proxy to do that, and they gave as the reason for that the fact 
    that it is permissible to appoint a proxy to do Hajj and also to do part of 
    it, thus the regard the actions of the proxy as being like his own actions. 

    If this is the case with regard to an 
    obligatory action, for which one must offer a compensatory sacrifice if one 
    fails to do it when one is able to do it, then how about one of the 
    essential parts or pillars of the pilgrimage? The only one who does not 
    complete the rituals is the one who dies during the pilgrimage, because he 
    is no longer expected to do it at all. 

    End quote from Fataawa ar-Ramli 
    (2/93-94) 

    Shaykh Ibn Baaz (may Allah have mercy on 
    him) was asked: 

    Is it permissible for me to appoint 
    someone to do tawaaf and sa‘i on my behalf, because I am not able to cope 
    with the crowds? 

    He replied: 

    If the pilgrim is able, then he must do 
    tawaaf and sa‘i for himself because Allah, may He be glorified, says 
    (interpretation of the meaning): “And perform properly (i.e. all the 
    ceremonies according to the ways of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of 
    Allah be upon him)), the Hajj and Umrah (i.e. the pilgrimage to Makkah) for 
    Allah” [al-Baqarah 2:196]. Whoever starts Hajj (or ‘Umrah) must complete 
    it, according to the consensus of the Muslims, even if it is a naafil 
    pilgrimage. So he has to complete it, in obedience to the words of Allah 
    (interpretation of the meaning): “And perform properly (i.e. all the 
    ceremonies according to the ways of Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of 
    Allah be upon him)), the Hajj and Umrah (i.e. the pilgrimage to Makkah) for 
    Allah” [al-Baqarah 2:196]. But if he is unable to do tawaaf and sa‘i, he 
    may do them by being carried on people’s backs or in a wheelchair. This is 
    what is required, and he should not appoint a proxy. 

    It is well-known that it is permissible to 
    do Hajj on behalf of an old man or an old woman, as is seen in the hadeeth 
    of the Khath‘ami woman who said: O Messenger of Allah, the obligation of 
    Hajj has come to my father when he is an old man, and he cannot sit firmly 
    on his mount. Can I perform Hajj on his behalf? He said: “Do Hajj on his 
    behalf.” Similarly, there was a man who said: O Messenger of Allah, the 
    obligation of Hajj has come to my father when he is an old man, and he 
    cannot do Hajj or travel; should I do Hajj on his behalf? He said: “Do Hajj 
    and ‘Umrah on behalf of your father.” So in the case of old men and old 
    women who cannot ride mounts – or travel in vehicles and planes nowadays – 
    someone else may perform Hajj on their behalf, as is also applicable in the 
    case of the deceased. 

    If a person takes it upon himself and 
    enters ihram, and comes (to Makkah), then he becomes unable, because of old 
    age or because of illness for which there is no hope of recovery, he may 
    appoint a proxy to complete Hajj on his behalf because he is unable to do 
    that. 

    But so long as he is able to complete it 
    himself or by being carried, then he must complete it. 

    End quote from Fataawa Noor ‘ala ad-Darb 
    (18/7) 

    To sum up what we have explained to the 
    questioner: 

    If her inability to complete sa‘i was due 
    to something temporary, and she only needed a little rest or medical 
    treatment, after which she would be able to complete sa‘i, even if that 
    would be a few days later, then it is not acceptable for her to appoint 
    someone else as her proxy. Rather she must go and do sa‘i immediately, and 
    complete her rituals by cutting her hair, even if a number of months or 
    years have passed since this happened, and she does not have to offer any 
    compensation for what she did during that period of acts that are prohibited 
    to the pilgrim in ihram, because she is excused due to her ignorance. We 
    have previously discussed the excuse of ignorance or unawareness with regard 
    to prohibited actions (during ihram) in questions no. 
    
    36522,
    
    49026 and 
    
    95860 

    But if the conditions allowing a proxy 
    that are mentioned above were applicable, then there is no blame on her and 
    her ‘umrah is complete, in sha Allah. 

    And Allah knows best.