What is the ruling regarding someone who performed 'Umrah four times and delayed the intention [for 'Umrah] after donning the clothes of Ihrām, and did not know that a fidyah (expiatory sacrifice) was obligatory until after returning to his country, and he now does not possess the money for the sacrifice? Is it obligatory for his parents to pay the fidyah on his behalf?

Whoever delays the intention of ihram and passes the miqat without returning to it, owes a dam (sacrificial offering) for each umrah performed in this manner. The dam is obligatory upon the mutamir (person performing umrah) himself, not his parents, for Allah Almighty says: "And every soul earns not [anything] except against itself, and no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another." If he is unable to offer the hady (sacrificial animal), he may fast for ten days for each umrah, because each umrah is an independent rite, and whoever leaves a واجب (obligatory act) of the rite owes a dam. So, whoever passes the miqat without ihram and then assumes ihram from beyond it, owes a dam. If he assumes ihram from the miqat, he does not owe a dam. The intention is a pillar of umrah, its place is the heart, and uttering it verbally is not a condition.