Regarding the first part of the question, this money is permissible, and you are bound by the terms of the permission. As long as it doesn’t violate the conditions of the permission, if the permission allows you to cover the expenses of meals and drinks for the group without specifying particular food or drink, then there is no harm in you paying for what others ordered, even if it includes something prohibited because you have been granted permission to pay, and you are not directly responsible for the money. This can be likened to being an agent in paying a ransom to kidnappers. The money may be unlawful for them, but you are acting on behalf of the payer. Especially since what they are requesting may not be considered prohibited within their customs or religion. .
The default approach in this matter is to avoid excessive inquiry, meaning you do not question each individual about what they have ordered. Instead, you pay the total amount at the end of the occasion.
This applies when you have been given specific permission. However, if you have been granted general permission that allows you to add conditions or restrictions regarding the type and quantity, then in this case, what was mentioned earlier is not permissible. Instead, it becomes obligatory for you to exercise your right to permit the permissible and prohibit the prohibited. You can forbid the request for the forbidden item and exclude it from the coverage, especially when both evidence and reason converge on the prohibition, such as in the case of alcohol.
As an act of advice, you can delegate someone who does not perceive the prohibition of these things to make the payment, and then you can reimburse them for the payment. This way, it would be settled between participants with similar beliefs, analogous to the permissibility of selling pork and alcohol in the lands of Islam among the followers of religions that permit them.
As for the second part of the question: The gift card can either be for a store that only sells prohibited items, such as alcohol and drugs, or it can be for stores where prohibited and permissible items are sold together.
If it is the former case, it is not permissible for a Muslim to give these types of gift cards to another Muslim or a non-Muslim. This is because it involves providing financial assistance for sinful activities. Allah, the Most High, says: “And do not cooperate in sin and aggression.” [Al-Ma’idah, 5:2].
If it is the latter case, it is permissible due to the presence of probability. It is possible that the person will use the card to purchase permissible items. We should not extend the ruling of prohibition to a situation where permissible and prohibited items are mixed.
Fatwa by Dr. Khālid Naṣr