Paylater Scheme On Marketplaces In Indonesia: Analysis Of The Mui Fatwa Of East Java

Abstract

The rapid growth of digital marketplaces in Indonesia has encouraged the emergence of various financial innovations, including the Buy Now Pay Later (paylater) service, which enables consumers to obtain goods immediately and pay in installments at a later date. This study aims to analyze the pay later scheme implemented in Indonesian marketplaces based on the perspective of the East Java Fatwa Commission of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI) and to examine the legal status of service fees, late payment penalties, and hybrid contracts within the transaction structure. This research employed a qualitative approach using field research combined with a normative Islamic economic law perspective. Data were collected through interviews with the East Java MUI Fatwa Commission and pay later users, supported by relevant literature and DSN-MUI fatwas. The findings reveal that marketplace payout practices involve a hybrid contract structure consisting of murabahah, qardh, ijarah, and wakalah elements within a single digital financing mechanism. According to the East Java MUI Fatwa Commission, service fees remain permissible when they genuinely represent actual and proportional services. However, service fees calculated based on financing amounts and payment tenors tend to resemble riba nasi'ah in substance. Furthermore, late payment penalties become problematic when they are treated as company profits because they contradict the principles of fairness and Islamic economic law. The study concludes that the permissibility of pay later services is highly conditional upon transparency of contracts, fairness in fee structures, and the absence of exploitative practices within the financing mechanism.