Residents in the world’s tallest tower have been asked to delay breaking the fast during the holy month of Ramadan by two or three minutes due to the extreme height of the building.

Muslims around the world fast during Ramadan’s daylight hours, but break their fast with an iftar meal once the sun has set and the call to Maghrib prayer has sounded.

However, the sheer size of the 828m-tall Burj Khalifa means that many residents will continue to see the sun for a short period after it has set on the rest of the city.

As a result, the Department of Islamic Affairs and Charitable Activities has issued a fatwa, or ruling, to require the tower’s residents to break their fast or go to their suhoor (pre-sunrise) meals according to three different timings.

Occupiers living above the 150th floor should delay breaking their fast by three minutes, while those on floors 80 to 149 must delay by two minutes.

Residents on the first 79 floors are subject to the same rules as the rest of Dubai.

“There is a difference in timing between the highest floor and those closest to the ground, especially during the Maghrib, Isha and Fajr prayer times,” Dr Ahmed Al Haddad, the grand mufti at Dubai’s Islamic Affairs department, told Emirates Today newspaper.

Al Haddad also warned air travellers not to break their fast only when they see the sun setting, not according to the local times of the countries they are flying over.