Ruling on distributing zakah to the poor other than those specified by the owner of the wealth
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Q192: The questioner says: E. B. from the Republic of Yemen, residing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: I work as a manager for the shops of one of the merchants, and his custom in paying out zakah is that it is in the month of Ramadan, but he is often absent from the country, so he leaves the zakah with me along with a list of those to whom the zakah is to be paid, and he tells me: If one of these people whose names are registered comes, pay him what I have allocated for him, and if he does not come, do not give it to anyone
other than them. What happens is that some of those people do not show up, which has caused much of the money allocated for zakah to remain hoarded. What is the ruling on this practice, and is it permissible for a person to specify the individuals to whom he will pay the zakah, or should he leave it to those who are entitled to it without specifying their names?
A192: You are a trustee, and it is obligatory for you to carry out what the owner of the zakah told you. Keep the zakah with you, and if the person entitled to it, who is named in the list you have, comes to you, pay him his right. As for those who do not come, hold onto their right and return it to the owner of the wealth. The owner of the wealth in which zakah is due is the one who disposes of what remains; if he wishes, he waits for the entitled person, and if he wishes, he distributes it to others among the entitled recipients. However, it is not befitting to withhold the zakah for a long period; rather, one should hasten to pay it out and not wait for another time, unless necessity calls for it, such as there being a needy person waiting for it, or a time of need, for example, or a time of famine or distress. In that case, it is permissible to wait for this anticipated situation. In any case, you are a trustee, and it is only required of you to carry out what you were told, and you must not dispose of this zakah without authorization from its owner.
other than them. What happens is that some of those people do not show up, which has caused much of the money allocated for zakah to remain hoarded. What is the ruling on this practice, and is it permissible for a person to specify the individuals to whom he will pay the zakah, or should he leave it to those who are entitled to it without specifying their names?
A192: You are a trustee, and it is obligatory for you to carry out what the owner of the zakah told you. Keep the zakah with you, and if the person entitled to it, who is named in the list you have, comes to you, pay him his right. As for those who do not come, hold onto their right and return it to the owner of the wealth. The owner of the wealth in which zakah is due is the one who disposes of what remains; if he wishes, he waits for the entitled person, and if he wishes, he distributes it to others among the entitled recipients. However, it is not befitting to withhold the zakah for a long period; rather, one should hasten to pay it out and not wait for another time, unless necessity calls for it, such as there being a needy person waiting for it, or a time of need, for example, or a time of famine or distress. In that case, it is permissible to wait for this anticipated situation. In any case, you are a trustee, and it is only required of you to carry out what you were told, and you must not dispose of this zakah without authorization from its owner.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.