Is it possible for financial support provided to needy brothers and friends to count as zakah on wealth?
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The questioner : Is it possible for financial support provided to needy brothers and friends to count as zakah on wealth?
The Shaykh : If by "brothers" you mean brothers in faith, then yes, it is valid to give your zakah to these brothers in faith, provided they are among the categories eligible for zakah, such as being in need of financial support or in need of paying off a debt they are unable to pay. In that case, they are given from the zakah, and it is lawful for them. However, if by "brothers" you mean brothers by blood, the matter requires detail. If you are obligated to provide for them, it is not lawful for them to take from your zakah, because if you give them from your zakah, you are thereby saving your own money. But if you are not obligated to provide for them, for example, if their father is alive but is poor and unable to provide for them, then there is no harm in your giving them from your zakah, provided they are poor.
Likewise, if they have children who are poor, it is lawful for you to give them from your zakah, because in this case you are not obligated to provide for them. It should be a general rule, indeed, it should be known, for it is a beneficial rule: any relative for whom you are obligated to provide financial support, it is not lawful for you to give them from your zakah an amount that covers that support, because doing so saves your money. However, if you give them from your zakah an amount that does not cover the support, meaning you give it to them to pay off a debt that is obligatory upon them for reasons other than support, then there is nothing wrong with that, even if it is your father or your son. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you. This listener to the program used the initials N, 'A, F as a code for his name. He sent a message saying:
The Shaykh : If by "brothers" you mean brothers in faith, then yes, it is valid to give your zakah to these brothers in faith, provided they are among the categories eligible for zakah, such as being in need of financial support or in need of paying off a debt they are unable to pay. In that case, they are given from the zakah, and it is lawful for them. However, if by "brothers" you mean brothers by blood, the matter requires detail. If you are obligated to provide for them, it is not lawful for them to take from your zakah, because if you give them from your zakah, you are thereby saving your own money. But if you are not obligated to provide for them, for example, if their father is alive but is poor and unable to provide for them, then there is no harm in your giving them from your zakah, provided they are poor.
Likewise, if they have children who are poor, it is lawful for you to give them from your zakah, because in this case you are not obligated to provide for them. It should be a general rule, indeed, it should be known, for it is a beneficial rule: any relative for whom you are obligated to provide financial support, it is not lawful for you to give them from your zakah an amount that covers that support, because doing so saves your money. However, if you give them from your zakah an amount that does not cover the support, meaning you give it to them to pay off a debt that is obligatory upon them for reasons other than support, then there is nothing wrong with that, even if it is your father or your son. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you. This listener to the program used the initials N, 'A, F as a code for his name. He sent a message saying: