Is fasting obligatory for young children?

Fasting is not obligatory for children who have not reached puberty or for those who are mentally incapacitated. The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said:

رُفِع القَلمُ عن ثلاثةٍ: عن النَّائمِ حتَّى يستيقظَ، وعن الصَّبي حتَّى يحتلِمَ، وعن المجنونِ حتَّى يَعقِلَ

“The pen has been lifted from three: from the insane until they regain their sanity, from the sleeping person until they wake up, and from the child until they reach puberty.” [1]

However, encouraging children to fast as a way to train them in worship is mustahabb (recommended). In a hadith it is mentioned: “We used to make our children fast, and we would make them toys out of wool. If one of them cried for food, we would give them the toy to play with until it was time to break the fast.” [2]

From the book “Fatwas Regarding Ramadan Fasting”

• [1] Tirmidhi, No. 1423. Nasa’i, No. 7346. Ahmad, No. 956.

• [2] Bukhari, No. 1960. Muslim, No. 1136.