The mainstream scholarly view

Fasting in Ramadan involves abstaining from food, drink and certain other things from dawn (fajr) to sunset (maghrib). The Quranic foundation is Surah Al-Baqarah verse 187 which speaks of eating and drinking until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct from the black thread of night, then completing the fast until sunset. Classical scholars extended this beyond food and water to anything that deliberately enters the body cavity through a recognised opening. Smoke and inhaled vapour fall within that scope.

Why vaping is treated like smoking

The scholarly consensus on cigarette smoking has long been that it breaks the fast. The reasoning has two strands. First, smoke is a substance entering the body through inhalation. Second, smoking provides physiological satisfaction that contradicts the abstinence purpose of the fast. Vaping triggers the same two arguments. Vapour is a substance entering the lungs. Nicotine provides the same physiological satisfaction. Different schools of thought (Hanafi, Shafi'i, Maliki, Hanbali) reach the same practical conclusion through slightly different routes.

The Dubai ruling

One widely cited contemporary ruling came from Sheikh Dr Ahmed Abdulaziz Al Haddad, Grand Mufti and Director of the Fatwa Department at Dubai's Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities Department. He stated explicitly that electronic cigarettes invalidate the fast because the vapour enters the body through inhalation similar to conventional cigarette smoke and therefore falls under the same ruling. The Dubai ruling is widely echoed in mainstream Sunni jurisprudence across the Gulf, North Africa and South Asia.

Even nicotine-free vapes

Some Muslim vapers ask whether 0% nicotine e-liquid changes the ruling. Most scholars say no. The act of inhaling a substance into the body is the issue, not specifically the nicotine content. A vape with only PG, VG and natural flavouring still introduces an inhaled substance into the lungs which most schools rule invalidates the fast. The same logic applies to herbal shisha. Some modern scholars have explored whether genuinely vapour-free or aerosol-free nicotine devices might be different but mainstream rulings remain that any inhaled substance breaks the fast.

After iftar: technically permitted

Once the fast ends at sunset (maghrib) and you have broken the fast with iftar, the rules of fasting no longer apply until the next dawn. Most scholars rule that vaping during this overnight window is technically permitted. However many religious authorities encourage Muslims to use Ramadan as a chance to reduce or quit nicotine altogether because the wider spirit of fasting is to detach from physical dependencies and exercise self-control. Some scholars actively discourage post-iftar vaping on this basis even though it does not invalidate the fast itself.

Alternatives during fasting hours

Nicotine patches are generally considered acceptable by most scholars because nicotine enters through the skin rather than through ingestion or inhalation. The patch does not violate the body-cavity rule. Nicotine gum is treated like food because it involves chewing and saliva swallowing so it usually breaks the fast. Nicotine pouches and snus involve placing a substance in the mouth which most scholars rule breaks the fast even if you do not chew. Cold turkey during the day with reduced vaping after iftar is the most common pragmatic approach for Muslim vapers.

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For more on vaping, faith and Islamic rulings around fasting, ablution and wider religious questions head over to our full vaping guides hub where every faith and lifestyle question is covered respectfully.