Prohibition on receiving payment for reading the Holy Qur’aan
Question

                In many Muslim countries we see that readers are hired to read the Qur’aan. Is it permissible for the reader to accept payment for his reading? Is the one who gives him payment for that sinning?.
Praise be to Allah.
    Reading Qur’aan is an act of worship, pure and simple, an act 
    by means of which a person seeks to draw close to his Lord. The basic 
    principle concerning this and similar acts that are only worship is that the 
    Muslim does them seeking thereby the pleasure of Allaah and seeking the 
    reward that is with Him, and not to seek reward or appreciation from any 
    other person. Hence it was unknown among the righteous salaf to hire people 
    to read the Qur’aan for the dead or on weddings or at parties. There is no 
    report from any of the imams of Islam that they enjoined such a thing or 
    allowed it. Neither it is known that any of them accepted payment for 
    reading Qur’aan. Rather they would read it in the hope of attaining that 
    which is with Allaah, may He be glorified. The Prophet (blessings and peace 
    of Allaah be upon him) commanded the one who reads the Qur’aan to ask of 
    Allaah thereby, and he warned against seeking anything from people. 
    Al-Tirmidhi narrated in his Sunan from ‘Imraan ibn Husayn that he 
    passed by a reader who was reading the Qur'aan, then he asked (for 
    something). He said Inna Lillaahi wa inna ilayhi raaji’oon (verily to 
    Allaah we belong and to Him is our return -- said when faced with calamity), 
    and then he said: I heard the Messenger of Allaah (blessings and peace of 
    Allaah be upon him) say: “Whoever reads the Qur'aan, let him ask of Allaah 
    thereby, for there will come people who will read the Qur'aan and ask of 
    people thereby.” 

    As for accepting payment for teaching it, or performing 
    ruqyah in which the Qur’aan is recited, and other things in which the 
    benefit goes to someone other than the reader, the saheeh hadeeths indicate 
    that it is permissible, because of the hadeeth of Abu Sa’eed who accepted a 
    flock of sheep as payment for performing ruqyah for the man who had been 
    stung by a scorpion, and he recited Soorat al-Faatihah for him as a ruqyah; 
    and the hadeeth of Sahl about when the Prophet (blessings and peace of 
    Allaah be upon him) gave a woman in marriage to a man in return for his 
    teaching her what he had memorised of the Qur'aan. So the one who accepts 
    payment just for reading or hires a group of people to read the Qur'aan is 
    going against the Sunnah and against what the righteous salaf (may Allaah be 
    pleased with them all) were agreed upon. 

    And Allaah is the source of strength. May Allaah sent 
    blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and Companions. End 
    quote 

    Standing Committee For Academic Research and Issuing Fatwas