Is it permissible for me to give my zakah to orphans whose legal guardian is my father and whose mother is married?
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The questioner : This questioner asks: Is it permissible for him to give his zakah to orphans whose legal guardian is his father and whose mother is married?
The Shaykh: If these orphans who are with your father have a condition that he provide for their maintenance, and he is fulfilling that, then it is not permissible for you to give them from the zakah, because they are self-sufficient due to the spending on them by their father. However, if they are staying with their father without a condition of maintenance, and they have no wealth from their father, then you may give them from the zakah, because they are among those entitled to it. But here is a point to note: some people think that an orphan has a right to zakah in all cases. That is not the case. Being an orphan is not a basis for being entitled to receive zakah, and an orphan has no right to zakah unless he is among the eight categories. The mere fact that he is an orphan does not entitle him, for an orphan may be wealthy and not in need of zakah.
The Shaykh: If these orphans who are with your father have a condition that he provide for their maintenance, and he is fulfilling that, then it is not permissible for you to give them from the zakah, because they are self-sufficient due to the spending on them by their father. However, if they are staying with their father without a condition of maintenance, and they have no wealth from their father, then you may give them from the zakah, because they are among those entitled to it. But here is a point to note: some people think that an orphan has a right to zakah in all cases. That is not the case. Being an orphan is not a basis for being entitled to receive zakah, and an orphan has no right to zakah unless he is among the eight categories. The mere fact that he is an orphan does not entitle him, for an orphan may be wealthy and not in need of zakah.