The Practising Muslim · Fiqh of Zakah

Zakah Responsibility and Distribution Insights

Explore obligations for zakah payment and rightful recipients in various scenarios.

8 questions · Medium · about 5 minutes

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1. If someone cannot afford zakat al-fitr for everyone they support, whom should they start with?

  • Themselves. (correct answer)
  • The most distant relative.
  • The oldest child automatically.
  • The person with the greatest social status.

Why

A person should first make sure they and their dependents have enough staple food for the day and night of Eid. If they still have some surplus but not enough for everyone’s zakat al-fitr, they start with themselves, then those closest in the order mentioned.

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2. If a father failed to give zakat al-fitr for dependents he was responsible for in past years, who is basically responsible for making it up?

  • The father, if he was obligated to spend on them. (correct answer)
  • The children in every case, even if the father was responsible for them.
  • No one, because zakat al-fitr cannot be made up.
  • Only the local community leader.

Why

A father must give zakat al-fitr for himself and for those whose maintenance he is responsible for, such as his wife and children. If he neglected it while able, he must make it up for the past years. If a child had their own wealth, then that child was responsible for giving zakat al-fitr on their own behalf. A child may also volunteer to give it for past years and inform the father.

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3. Who should pay zakah on behalf of a minor or someone who is insane when their wealth meets the zakah conditions?

  • The guardian pays it from that person’s wealth. (correct answer)
  • No one pays it until the minor reaches adulthood.
  • The community pays it from public funds.
  • The guardian pays it from their own wealth in all cases.

Why

Zakah is a financial duty attached to wealth. According to the majority view cited, if the wealth of a minor or someone who is insane reaches the nisab and a full Hijri year passes, the guardian pays zakah from that person’s wealth and should not wait until adulthood or recovery.

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4. When may someone who is officially appointed to collect or administer zakah be compensated?

  • They may be paid from zakah or from the public treasury, according to their appointed role. (correct answer)
  • They may take whatever percentage they choose from the zakah.
  • They may accept gifts from people whose zakah they collect.
  • They may take extra zakah even if already fully salaried for that work.

Why

Those officially appointed to collect, record, guard, or distribute zakah may be compensated for that role. The source states that compensation may come from zakah itself or from the public treasury. However, the collector may not take from zakah on their own, may not accept gifts from those paying zakah, and if already paid from public funds for that role, they do not receive an additional share from zakah.

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5. May zakah be given to well-off relatives, mosques, or schools simply because they are good causes?

  • No, zakah must go to one of the eligible categories named for zakah. (correct answer)
  • Yes, any good cause may receive zakah.
  • Yes, well-off relatives are always better recipients.
  • Yes, mosques and schools are the main zakah recipients.

Why

Zakah has specific eligible categories. Giving gifts or voluntary charity to relatives, mosques, or schools may be good, but it does not count as zakah unless the recipient falls under an eligible zakah category. Poor and needy people may receive zakah, but well-off relatives, mosques, and general building projects do not count as zakah recipients.

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6. Which group correctly lists the categories eligible to receive zakah?

  • The poor, needy, zakah workers, those whose hearts are to be drawn, freeing captives, debtors, Allah’s cause, and stranded travelers. (correct answer)
  • Only community leaders, recent converts, and mosque builders.
  • Anyone who asks for financial help.
  • Only relatives, regardless of whether they are poor or rich.

Why

The Quran names eight categories for zakah. Zakah should not be spent outside these categories. It is not necessary to give to all eight categories at the same time; priority should be given where the need is greatest.

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7. Who is responsible for paying zakah on gold or silver jewelry that reaches the nisab?

  • The owner of the jewelry. (correct answer)
  • The husband automatically, even if he does not own it.
  • Whoever gifted the jewelry.
  • Both spouses equally in every case.

Why

The source states that zakah on jewelry is paid by its owner. If the husband or someone else pays on the owner’s behalf with permission, that is acceptable. If a gift was given jointly and each person still owns a share, then each owner is responsible for zakah on their own share if it meets the conditions.

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8. What is the basis for the ruling that zakah is due on trade goods?

  • Evidence from the Quran, Sunnah, and reports from the Companions. (correct answer)
  • Only modern business custom.
  • Only the personal opinion of one scholar.
  • A rule limited to gold shops only.

Why

The majority of scholars held that zakah is obligatory on trade goods. The source cites evidence from the Quran, Sunnah, and reports from the Companions, and states that the combined evidence supports the ruling.

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A note on these answers

These questions are for learning and self-testing. Explanations are drawn from the sources linked on each question and are not a fatwa. For a ruling on your own circumstances, please consult a qualified scholar.

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