A man has a debt owed to him by another man and does not have the means to pay it off; is it permissible for him to consider this amount as part of his zakah?

The questioner : Now, a person has paid the zakah on his wealth. Suppose, for example, that his zakah came to one hundred and fifty dinars, and he is owed fifty dinars by so-and-so. He says to him, "So-and-so, you are able to pay," and the other says, "No." Then he says, "I want to consider the fifty dinars you have, which you owe me, as being from the category of debtors. I want to forgive you for them and count them as part of the zakah. Is this permissible?"

The Shaykh : Is it permissible or not? Because I fear there may be some deception involved in the matter. You said in what you mentioned that he considered him to be among the debtors. Is he truly among the debtors? He may be one of the merchants who earn vast sums of money, but, as is the case with many merchants, they do not always have what is called today liquidity. Is it permissible for such a person to be considered among the debtors? The answer is: No. However, if he is truly among the debtors, and he considered that amount of debt as part of the zakah on his wealth, and the debtor accepted it, it is not permissible for the debtor to accept that unless he is poor. So the answer is: It is permissible, on the condition that it is not a deception to save him from what he might otherwise have to pay out of his zakah.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.

The Shaykh : Please, do you have another question, or are you not connected?