Islamic perspective on women’s employment: Is it permissible for Muslim women to operate beauty parlours?

Someone from Jordan wrote to Hazrat Amirul Momineen, Khalifatul Masih V^aa, stating that the following questions had been submitted on their website:

Is it permissible to marry one’s brother’s divorcee?

If someone has got a gold tooth fitted, is it permissible to remove it after the person’s demise?

Is it permissible for women to operate beauty parlours?

Huzoor-e-Anwar^aa, in his letter dated 6 June 2022, provided the following responses to these questions:

“[…] Operating or working in a beauty parlour is both permissible. There is no reason for it to be impermissible from a religious perspective, provided that certain religious considerations are taken into account: there should be no mixing between men and women, the workers in the parlour should be women, and the individuals getting made up should also be women. Full provisions for purdah should be made. Makeup should be limited to the face or other parts of the body that do not lead to immodesty when beautified.”