May the peace, mercy and blessing of Allah be upon you. May Allah preserve you.

My question is: Is it permissible to give birthday presents or anything else without having a party? May Allah reward you.

May the peace, mercy and blessing of Allah be upon you also.

All praise is for Allah, and may peace and blessing be upon the Messenger of Allah and his family. To proceed:

The basic principle concerning gift-giving in Shari`ah is that it is permissible and a good thing to do. It is one of those acts which makes love develop between people. In connection with birthdays, however, it must be avoided, due to the texts that clearly state the prohibition of imitating non-Muslims. For, whoever imitates a people is from them. As such, I hope if this rule has already been broken, that the gifts should be given either before these occasions or afterwards in order to eliminate the reason preventing it, so that the matter can return to its original state of permissibility; and Allah Almighty is more exalted and more knowledgeable.