[أبو عبد الله الأثري]

Deserving recipients of Zakat-ul-Fitr

The third question of Fatwa no. 3055

Q 3: In marketplaces, some men, whose religious commitment is unknown to us, ask us for Zakat-ul-Fitr (obligatory charity paid before the Festival of Breaking the Fast). There are others with a reasonable standard of living who spend whatever Zakah (obligatory charity) they receive on their children. There are others who receive a monthly salary, but are not very religious. Can Zakah be paid to these categories?

A: Zakat-ul-Fitr should be paid to poor Muslims even if they are sinners as long as their sins are not so grave that they may drive them out of the fold of Islam. A poor person who deserves Zakat-ul-Fitr is the one whose apparent status indicates so, even if they are actually rich. However, the person paying Zakat-ul-Fitr should seek out good poor people as much as possible. If it turns out later that the person who took it is actually rich, it will not affect the payer of Zakah; rather, it will serve to discharge the obligation on their part, praise be to Allah. May Allah grant us success! May blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and Companions!

Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta’

`Abdullah ibn Qa`ud
`Abdullah ibn Ghudayyan
`Abdul-`Aziz ibn `Abdullah ibn Baz

Source: Fatwas of the Permanent Committee