Is it permissible to forgive a debtor and count that as zakah?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you. A questioner says: He has a debt with a man, and this man is in need, meaning he is poor. Can he make this debt his zakah?
The Shaykh : Yes. The issue here is whether it is permissible to forgive a debtor and count that as zakah. Pay attention.
That is, a person claims one hundred riyals from a poor person, and he owes zakah of one hundred riyals. If he waives the debt from the poor person, does that suffice for the zakah he owes, or does it not suffice?
We say: It does not suffice. It is not permissible to forgive a person in financial difficulty and count that as zakah. Why? Because the tangible assets in his possession are under his control, and he may dispose of them as he wishes, whereas the debt in the liability of people, specifically the person in financial difficulty, may or may not be paid. Zakah on wealth is of the same kind as the wealth. So if the wealth in his possession is tangible assets, its zakah must be tangible assets, not a debt. Accordingly, if one forgives a person in financial difficulty of his debt and intends it as zakah, he must pay the zakah, and his forgiveness will be considered voluntary charity, because forgiving a person in financial difficulty of a debt does not suffice as zakah on tangible assets. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned: "It does not suffice without dispute". He said it without dispute. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.
The Shaykh : Yes. The issue here is whether it is permissible to forgive a debtor and count that as zakah. Pay attention.
That is, a person claims one hundred riyals from a poor person, and he owes zakah of one hundred riyals. If he waives the debt from the poor person, does that suffice for the zakah he owes, or does it not suffice?
We say: It does not suffice. It is not permissible to forgive a person in financial difficulty and count that as zakah. Why? Because the tangible assets in his possession are under his control, and he may dispose of them as he wishes, whereas the debt in the liability of people, specifically the person in financial difficulty, may or may not be paid. Zakah on wealth is of the same kind as the wealth. So if the wealth in his possession is tangible assets, its zakah must be tangible assets, not a debt. Accordingly, if one forgives a person in financial difficulty of his debt and intends it as zakah, he must pay the zakah, and his forgiveness will be considered voluntary charity, because forgiving a person in financial difficulty of a debt does not suffice as zakah on tangible assets. Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah mentioned: "It does not suffice without dispute". He said it without dispute. Yes.
The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.