What is the ruling on paying zakah to associations that deliver it to its rightful recipients?
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Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the ruling on paying zakah to associations, since they deliver it to its rightful recipients, knowing that I do not know any of the poor?
Answer:
Zakah is obligatory upon you, and it is one of the pillars of Islam. It is obligatory for you to pay it yourself, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And give zakah.” However, if there is someone you trust whom you can entrust with paying and distributing it, that is an exception. If you are one hundred percent confident that the association will deliver the zakah to those who are entitled to it, there is no harm. But if you do not know about them, it is not permissible for you, and your obligation will not be discharged, except by you paying it yourself or through your agent whom you trust. Yes.
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, what is the ruling on paying zakah to associations, since they deliver it to its rightful recipients, knowing that I do not know any of the poor?
Answer:
Zakah is obligatory upon you, and it is one of the pillars of Islam. It is obligatory for you to pay it yourself, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted: “And give zakah.” However, if there is someone you trust whom you can entrust with paying and distributing it, that is an exception. If you are one hundred percent confident that the association will deliver the zakah to those who are entitled to it, there is no harm. But if you do not know about them, it is not permissible for you, and your obligation will not be discharged, except by you paying it yourself or through your agent whom you trust. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [621 -2802] ما حكم دفع الزكاة للجمعيات حيث يقومون بإيصالها إلى مُستحقها؟ - الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.