Those who donate their money when they give charity do not specify what they are giving from their wealth; is it obligatory zakah or voluntary charity? So how do we handle this?

The questioner : One person brings coupons; I mean, sometimes: clothes, rice, sugar, flour, dried meats, canned goods. Then the donors do not say about them: "This is zakah" or "This is charity"; I mean, even the one collecting does not know what the donor intended with it. He tells you: "This is a donation" in most cases, or "Charity for the poor, distribute it in your knowledge." So in most cases, it is truly difficult to distinguish the donor's intention, whether he intended it as zakah or as charity. And the items usually come as charity; because, I mean, now most donors are not farmers. Even the rice they buy, they buy it as a purchase; they do not have a rice farm, for example. They buy it from the shops and bring it as it is. After distribution to the poor, there may be a surplus—for example, one or two bags of rice. I wanted to be precise, I mean. After the needs of all the studied, designated, and known families to the committee are met, there is a surplus of one bag. So some of the volunteer brothers may be in need of some rice, so he is given a small amount, I mean, the amount of his need, his family, he and his children; I mean, he is not given—for example—a bag to dispose of among his entire tribe. He is given this. Clothes come, and after they are distributed to the poor, there remains—for example, excuse me, a small shirt or... it is given to his young son in school or something like that. So these are very small things, and the need is estimated according to its size. And some of the brothers truly refuse, but the committee says: "Everyone knows his own need best." If you, as a committee member, see that the volunteer worker has a need after there is a surplus beyond the need of the true poor and needy, he is given proportionally. So is this action Sharia-compliant or not?

The Shaykh : Your answer has two branches, and each one needs an answer.
The first branch: your statement that it is difficult to distinguish whether this is obligatory charity or voluntary. The other branch: that a share of the surplus is distributed to some members of the committee. In answer to the first issue, we say: This difficulty, when the committee adopts the Sharia ruling we mentioned earlier, they will feel the necessity of knowing the types of these charities; so that each charity is placed in its prescribed place. So then, if a person comes with money in cash, it is possible in most cases that it is zakah on wealth. It is not so in the examples you gave, such as the shirt—for example; this might be voluntary charity. In the first case, it is very easy to clarify this with the person in a polite phrase so that he does not feel any embarrassment. You tell him: "My brother, we have two boxes to implement the Sharia ruling. One box is distributed to the poor hand-to-hand, and that is the obligatory zakah. And a box for voluntary zakah. So that we know which box to put the money you are generous with in, box number one or box number two." He will tell you what is in his heart at that time. In this way, it can be placed in the appropriate box. Is this clear?

The questioner : This, my sir, this... if this is the case, this matter is easy in dealing with bank transfers. We, for example, the zakah committee here in... we have two separate accounts. An account for zakah in Oman, and an account for charity... in Kuwait. This facilitates donations that come as external transfers directly to the bank via fax or postal correspondence.

The Shaykh : ... .

The questioner : Three. But when we stand in front of the mosque and you have a thousand or two thousand worshippers.

The Shaykh : Yes.

The questioner : And you say—for example: "Give from yourselves for yourselves to the poor and the needy."

The Shaykh: Yes.

The questioner : So some give half a dinar or ten qirsh, and some give twenty dinars or fifty dinars.

The Shaykh: Correct.

The questioner : And sometimes they are pushing each other, so how do you clarify with each one, asking him about what he threw in?

The Shaykh : His answer: . Now you have brought some differing examples; one is giving half a dinar, and another is giving twenty dinars. The one giving half a dinar, it does not cross the mind of the receiver.

The questioner : That it is zakah.

The Shaykh : That it is obligatory. But on the contrary, the one giving twenty dinars has a strong possibility that it is zakah on wealth. So then, you and those like you, we leave them.

The questioner : And he is asked.

The Shaykh : The one who it is most likely that his is obligatory zakah is asked. And with this, we have finished the answer to the question or the first branch.
The second branch is easy; because we said: It is not permissible to give the worker a salary or pension. But when the same worker is poor, he needs charity, and he does not refuse it, as you pointed out that some of them refuse. So they are given. In fact, they may be more deserving of it.

The questioner : He is given as a poor person, not as a worker.

The Shaykh : Yes, well done, this is it; and with that, the matter is concluded.

The questioner : The limits of poverty, O Shaykh?

The Shaykh : Everyone upon whom zakah is not obligatory is poor.
Please proceed.