What is the criterion for giving zakah, whether from a father to a son or from a son to a father?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : What is the criterion for giving zakah, whether from a father to a son or from a son to a father?
The Shaykh : The criterion is what we mentioned: that one must not give anything that is obligatory for him to provide. If he gives it to his son or his father for the purpose of financial maintenance, and he is one upon whom it is obligatory to spend on them, then it does not suffice. If he gives it to pay off a debt or something similar that is not obligatory for him, then it is sufficient.
The Shaykh : The criterion is what we mentioned: that one must not give anything that is obligatory for him to provide. If he gives it to his son or his father for the purpose of financial maintenance, and he is one upon whom it is obligatory to spend on them, then it does not suffice. If he gives it to pay off a debt or something similar that is not obligatory for him, then it is sufficient.