Giving zakat al-mal from a sister to her sister: Is there any harm in that?
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The questioner : Giving zakat al-mal from a sister to her sister?
The Shaykh : There is no harm if the sister is among those eligible for zakat and the giver is not obligated to provide for her maintenance. The rule is that if one gives zakat to someone for whom one is not obligated to provide maintenance, and that person is eligible for zakat, there is no harm. Likewise, if one gives zakat to someone for whom one is obligated to provide maintenance, but gives it to them for a purpose other than maintenance, such as debt, for example, there is no harm. An example of this is a man who has a poor brother, and this brother has children; the wealthy brother may give this poor person from his zakat what is sufficient for him and his family for a period of one year. Another example is if a person has wealth and is wealthy.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And his father is in debt, owing a debt he cannot pay off, so he pays off his father’s debt from his zakat; there is no harm in that. This is because a father’s debt is not obligatory for the son to pay off. And likewise, conversely, if the son has a debt and he is poor and unable to pay it off, and his father has zakat, he may pay off his son’s debt from his zakat, because it is not obligatory for the father to pay off his son’s debt.
The questioner : May Allah preserve you.
The Shaykh : There is no harm if the sister is among those eligible for zakat and the giver is not obligated to provide for her maintenance. The rule is that if one gives zakat to someone for whom one is not obligated to provide maintenance, and that person is eligible for zakat, there is no harm. Likewise, if one gives zakat to someone for whom one is obligated to provide maintenance, but gives it to them for a purpose other than maintenance, such as debt, for example, there is no harm. An example of this is a man who has a poor brother, and this brother has children; the wealthy brother may give this poor person from his zakat what is sufficient for him and his family for a period of one year. Another example is if a person has wealth and is wealthy.
The questioner : Yes.
The Shaykh : And his father is in debt, owing a debt he cannot pay off, so he pays off his father’s debt from his zakat; there is no harm in that. This is because a father’s debt is not obligatory for the son to pay off. And likewise, conversely, if the son has a debt and he is poor and unable to pay it off, and his father has zakat, he may pay off his son’s debt from his zakat, because it is not obligatory for the father to pay off his son’s debt.
The questioner : May Allah preserve you.