Is Fish Halal? Rules on Fish, Scales and Slaughter

The Qur'an makes the game of the sea and its food lawful for believers and travelers ^[1]. A sahih hadith in Sunan Abi Dawud describes sea water as pure and its dead as lawful ^[2]. A hadith in Sunan Ibn Majah names fish and locusts as two kinds of dead meat that are permitted ^[8].

This is why fish is the one animal food that every school agrees on. Even the Hanafi school, the strictest on seafood, allows fish. Its rule is that fish, and only fish, are halal from the sea ^[4].

Land animals must be slaughtered with God's name. Fish do not. Because the hadith calls the dead of the sea lawful ^[2][8], a fish caught in a net or on a hook is halal without any ritual.

This also means the person who caught or sold the fish does not need to be Muslim, for most scholars. Supermarket salmon, tuna or cod is fine as fish. What matters is how it is cooked and what it is served with. Frozen breaded fish sticks and fillets are usually plain fish with flour and oil, but some brands add flavorings, so read the label.

Floating fish (Hanafi). Hanafi scholars do not allow a fish that dies naturally, with no outside cause, and floats on the surface. This is called samak al-tafi. Fish that die from an outside cause, such as being caught, are fine ^[5]. Darul Ifta Birmingham points out that normal fishing, such as tuna caught below the surface, is not affected and that people should not fall into baseless doubts ^[5].

Scales (Ja'fari). Rulings from the office of Ayatollah Sistani allow only fish with scales. Scaleless fish are not allowed. The fish must be caught alive or die in the net. If you doubt whether a fish has scales, you should not eat it ^[6]. This affects scaleless fish such as catfish. See catfish and eel.

Sistani's rulings also address eating fish at a non-Muslim restaurant. You need to be sure the fish has scales, even if they were removed, and that it was caught alive or died in the net ^[6]. Ja'fari followers often ask the restaurant which fish is used, or choose common scaled fish like salmon, cod or tilapia.

• Batter and sauces. Beer batter is common in fish and chips. See beer battered fish. Wine is used in many fish sauces.
• Shared fryers. Restaurants may fry fish in the same oil as pork items. Ask if this matters to you.
• Sushi. Raw fish is halal, but sushi rice can contain mirin. See sushi.
• Fish products. Fish gelatin and fish oil come from fish, so they avoid the slaughter question that beef and pork gelatin raise.

For specific fish, see tuna, salmon and tilapia.