The conditions for the Friday prayer to be valid

Jumu'ah is only valid in a city or town like the one described above, or in the built-up area right around it. It is not valid in isolated villages, open fields, mountains or deserts, unless they are close enough to a town for people to go and come back the same day. Even a smaller village can count as a 'town' if the ruler has given permission for a proper Friday mosque to be built there.

A Muslim ruler, or someone he has appointed (like an imam or a judge), or that person's permission, is needed for a valid Jumu'ah. If there is no Muslim ruler around, or asking is not possible, the Muslims of that place may choose someone by agreement to lead it, and the prayer will still be valid.

Jumu'ah can only be prayed during Zuhr time, not before it starts, and not after it ends. If Zuhr time runs out while the prayer is still happening, even if only the very last part is left, the prayer becomes invalid. It is not made up later; Zuhr is prayed instead.

A sermon must be given before the prayer, during Zuhr time, in front of at least three grown, sane men who stay from the start of the sermon to the end. Without a sermon, or with one given at the wrong time or after the prayer, Jumu'ah is not valid. (The full rules for the sermon are explained in their own section.)

At least three grown men (besides the imam) who could lead a prayer themselves must be present from the start of the sermon right through to the end of the prayer. If they all leave before the imam goes down into sajdah, the prayer becomes invalid and Zuhr must be prayed instead. If they leave after the imam's sajdah, there is no problem, and he finishes the prayer.

Anyone must be free to walk in and join the prayer. If the mosque is locked, or people are stopped from coming in, the prayer is not valid.

Jumu'ah requires a misr: a populated place with enough Muslims obligated to attend Friday prayer that its largest mosque cannot hold them all, together with its fina, the surrounding area that serves the city's needs (racecourses, cemeteries, army encampments and the like), whether adjoining it or somewhat distant. Jumu'ah is invalid in isolated villages, open fields, mountains, rivers or deserts, unless these are near enough to a Jumu'ah-holding place, and share its needs, to count as its fina, or are close enough that residents can attend in the town and return home the same day.

The presence of the Islamic ruler, or his appointed deputy (a governor, judge, preacher or imam), or that person's permission, is required for Jumu'ah to be valid. Where the ruler or officials of a place are non-Muslim, or seeking permission is impractical, Jumu'ah remains valid, and the Muslims of that place may select someone by consensus to lead it.

Jumu'ah is valid only within Zuhr time. It is invalid if performed before Zuhr begins or after it ends. If Zuhr time expires while the prayer is still in progress (even if only the final sitting, for the length of the tashahhud, remains), the prayer becomes invalid, because being within time is a condition of the whole prayer, not merely of its start. The missed Jumu'ah is not made up; Zuhr is offered instead.

Delivering a sermon before the prayer is a condition of Jumu'ah's validity. It must be within Zuhr time, and it must include the remembrance of Allah: even something as brief as SubhanAllah or Alhamdulillah suffices for validity, though relying on only that minimal form is disliked as contrary to the sunnah. It must be delivered before at least three sane, adult men, meeting the conditions to lead a prayer themselves, who remain present from its start to its end, even if deaf or asleep. If the sermon is omitted, given outside Zuhr time, or read after the prayer, Jumu'ah is invalid. The fuller rules of the sermon are set out in their own section.

At least three men, besides the imam, who are eligible to lead a prayer, must be present from the start of the sermon through to the end of the prayer. If every one of them leaves before the imam reaches his sajdah (even if only one or two, or none, remain), Jumu'ah is invalid and Zuhr must be repeated. If they leave after the imam's sajdah, there is no harm, and he completes the prayer.

There must be general, unrestricted permission for anyone to join the prayer. Where access is restricted (for example, the mosque's doors are locked), Jumu'ah is not valid.

Jumu'ah requires a misr. The jurists differ over the precise definition: some point to where legal punishments (hudud) are enforced, some to the presence of a judge and ruler, some to multiple neighbourhoods, markets and adjoining villages, some to every trade being practicable there, some to all basic necessities being available, some to the presence of a preacher and a khatib, but these are commonly occurring features of large cities rather than the definition itself, which rests on common usage ('urf): a place the general population would call a misr. The definition this manual follows is that a misr is a place with enough Muslims obligated to attend Jumu'ah that its largest mosque, one with daily congregational prayer, of roughly forty legal cubits (about 23 metres, or 25 yards), on the preferred view, cannot hold them all; where no such mosque exists, or none at all, but the residents still could not be accommodated within that space, the place counts as a misr regardless. On this definition, even a large village can qualify.

The presence of the Islamic ruler or his appointed deputy (a na'ib, amir, qadi, khatib or imam), or that person's idhn (permission), is a condition of Jumu'ah's validity. Where the ruler or officials of a locality are non-Muslim, or obtaining permission is impractical, Jumu'ah remains valid, and the Muslims of that place may appoint someone by mutual agreement to lead it.

Jumu'ah is valid only within waqt az-zuhr: the time beginning once the sun has passed its zenith. It is invalid both before this time and after it lapses. Should Zuhr time end while the prayer is still underway, even if only the qadr at-tashahhud of the final qa'dah remains, the prayer is rendered invalid, since being within time is a condition of the entire prayer, and it is not sufficient that it merely began within time. The missed Jumu'ah is not qada'd; Zuhr is offered in its place.

Delivery of the khutbah before the prayer is a condition of validity. Its substance is dhikr Allah before people, and even the bare minimum of SubhanAllah or Alhamdulillah discharges this condition, though confining it to such a minimal form is makruh, being contrary to the sunnah. It must be delivered before at least three sane, adult men who meet the conditions for imamah (even if they are themselves travellers or ill, since these are conditions of obligation, not of eligibility to constitute the sermon's audience), no women or children may be counted among them, and they must remain present from the sermon's start to its end, even if deaf or asleep. Omitting the sermon, delivering it outside Zuhr time, or delivering it after the prayer, invalidates Jumu'ah entirely; neither the sermon nor the prayer stands. The full sunnahs, obligatory elements and disliked acts of the khutbah are treated in their own section.

At least three men, besides the imam, eligible to lead any congregational prayer, must be present from the beginning of the sermon through to the end of the prayer; the presence of women or young children alone does not satisfy this, though travellers or the sick who are present do satisfy it. If every member of this minimum congregation departs before the imam reaches his sajdah (whether one, two, or none remain), Jumu'ah is invalidated and Zuhr must be repeated; departure after his sajdah does no harm, and he completes the prayer.

Ijazah 'ammah, unrestricted general permission for anyone to join, is a condition of validity. Where access is restricted, as by locking the mosque's doors, Jumu'ah is invalid.