37.1. CHAPTER ZAKAT AL-FITR
“Chapter: Zakat al-Fitr”: Zakat means charity. It is called such as it purifies i.e., it is derived from the Arabic word for purify. That is, it purifies the object on which the zakat is paid. It purifies it and increases it. (See Lisan al-‘Arab (14/358) and al-Mutla (p. 122))
“Zakat al-Fitr”: This is zakat that is paid due to fitr. Fitr here refers to the blessed month of Ramadan. Allah has made it wajib upon each and every Muslim to pay this zakat at the end of this month as charity.
We have studied about zakat on wealth thus far. Zakat al-fitr is zakat on the self. Hence, it is compulsory on the rich as well as the poor that are able to pay it. It is compulsory on the free person and the slave, the young and old, male and female. This is because it is zakat on the body and self.
It is wajib for every Muslim who has a ra in excess of his food and the food of his family and his basic needs on the day of ‘Eid and its night.
Zakat al-fitr is wajib, i.e., it is obligatory. The evidence for this is Allah’s words: {He has certainly succeeded who purifies himself, and mentions the name of his Lord and prays.} (Al-Aʿla: 14-15) “Purifies” in this ayah refers to the payment of zakat al-fitr. “Prays” refers to the Eid prayer. This ayah proves that zakat al-fitr is legislated in Islam.
From the Sunnah there are many authentic ahadith that prove it. One example would be the narration of Ibn ‘Umar who said, “The Messenger of Allah made the giving of zakat al-fitr obligatory on every Muslim, male or female, free person or slave, young or old.” (Reported by al-Bukhari (2/161, 162) and Muslim (3/68) from the narration of ‘Abdullah ibn ‘Umar.)
His saying, “The Messenger of Allah made it obligatory (farada rasul allah)” is proof that zakat al-fitr is legislated in Islam. It proves that it is an obligation and not just a recommended act.
“It is wajib for every Muslim”: Regardless of his or her gender or status. It is also an indication that disbelievers are exempt of this obligation at the end of Ramadan, even though they possess physical bodies (as this tithe is wajib upon every Muslim “body”). This is because zakat al-fitr is an act of worship (‘ibadah) which is futile when performed by those who disbelieve.
“Who has a sa in excess of his food and the food of his family and his basic needs on the day of ‘Eid and its night”: Zakat al-fitr is obligatory on a Muslim under the following condition: That he has an excess of food than what he, his family and those who are under his charge require for the day and night of ‘Eid. If there is extra food, he needs to give it away as zakat al-fitr. If one does not have any excess food after fulfilling his needs, the needs of his family and of those who are under his charge, then he need not pay this zakat. This is due to the absence of the condition which makes zakat al-fitr obligatory. Allah says: {So fear Allah as much as you are able.} (Al-Taghabun: 16) And He says: {And has not placed upon you in the religion any difficulty} (Al-Hajj: 78)
Having debt is not an excuse for not giving zakat al-fitr unless it is being sought.
“Having debt is not an excuse for not paying zakat al-fitr”: If a person has a debt but he has enough to pay zakat al-fitr, then he should give zakat al-fitr and not cite his debts as an excuse for failing to do so. It is an obligation upon him to give zakat al-fitr unlike the case of zakat on wealth. Zakat on al-mal (wealth) is not required if the wealth does not attain nisab after subtracting the debt owed.
“Unless it is being sought”: If the creditor is actively seeking the repayment of the debt and the debtor only has enough money to pay it off, then he is not required to give zakat al-fitr. This is because he will have nothing left to give as zakat al-fitr. What he owns becomes the property of the creditor by default.
He gives zakat al-fitr on himself and on behalf of the Muslims who are under his welfare, even if it is only during the month of Ramadan.
“He gives zakat al-fitr on himself and on behalf of the Muslims who are under his welfare”: He gives zakat on himself first and then on his dependants for example his children, spouse and parents and his next of kin. He must give on behalf of all those under his welfare. However, he must commence with paying the zakat for himself first as this is the higher priority.
“Even if it is only during the month of Ramadan”: This is to highlight an extraordinary situation. One’s family is under his charge throughout and their welfare is taken care of by him always. Hence there is no doubt that he must pay zakat al-fitr for them. However, there are two views regarding giving zakat al-fitr for those who come under one’s charge during Ramadan specifically, as a result of his kindness: Firstly, it is said that it is wajib as they are under his welfare. Secondly, it is said that it is only mustahabb and not an obligation. The preferred view, and Allah knows best, is that it is not wajib to give zakat on behalf of those who come under his charge only during Ramadan. This is because their welfare during the month of Ramadan is only charity and he is not duty-bound to provide for them. (A narration from Imam Ahmad which was preferred by Ibn Qudamah. See al-Insaf (3/168).)
If he is unable to give for some of them, he starts by giving it to himself, his spouse, mother, father and his son and so on according to who is eligible to receive his inheritance.
“If he is unable to give for some of them, he starts by giving it on himself, his spouse, mother, father and his son and so on according to who is eligible to receive his inheritance”: If he has the means, he is duty-bound to give zakat on himself and on behalf of his spouse, parents and children as they are his dependants.
However, if he does not have the means and can only afford to give zakat al-fitr for some of his dependants, then he should start giving zakat on himself followed by his spouse, as she is attached to him, followed by his children, as they depend on him for welfare, followed by his parents. He begins giving zakat al-fitr on behalf of his mother followed by his father.
A man once said to the Prophet (pbuh), “I have a dirham.’’ The Prophet(pbuh) replied, “Spend it on yourself.” The man then said, “I have another.” To which the Prophet replied, “Spend it on your wife.” He added, “I have another.” The Prophet(pbuh) then said, “Spend it on your children.” The man stated that he had another. The Prophet said, “Spend it on your parents.” When the man said that he had another dirham, the Prophet told him, “You are more knowing.” (Reported by Ahmad (2/251,471), Abu Dawud (1691), al-Nasal (5/62) and Ibn Hibban (4219) from the narration of Abu Hurairah.) I.e., he was more knowledgeable as to what to do with it. Hence, he begins by giving zakat for himself then for his dependants, prioritizing them as mentioned above.
The slave’s portion of a sa’ is collectively given by his masters. It is mustahabb on the foetus. It is not wajib for the husband to give on behalf of his estranged wife. It is permissible to pay the zakat al-fitr on himself if it is wajib upon him and without the prior consent of the head of the family or guardian even though it is the duty of the latter to pay it on his behalf.
“The slave’s portion of a sa’ is collectively given by his masters”: That is, if the slave is co-owned by many masters. Zakat al-fitr is wajib upon the slave. However, it is the duty of the master to pay it on his behalf. If he is jointly owned by many masters, then the sa’ of staple food is to be collectively given by them proportionate to their stake in the slave.
“It is mustahabb on the foetus”: I.e., to give the zakat al-fitr. This is the unborn child still in the womb. ‘Uthman had ordered this. (Reported by Ibn Abi Shaybah (2/432) that ‘Uthman used to give zakat al-fitr on behalf of the foetus.) Hence, it is mustahabb to give zakat al-fitr on behalf of the foetus.
“It is not wajib for the husband to give on behalf of his estranged wife”: This is because the estranged wife is longer under the welfare of her husband due to their separation. Zakat al-fitr is directly linked with the relationship of dependency hence it is not wajib for the husband to give zakat al-fitr on behalf of his estranged wife.
“It is permissible to pay the zakat al-fitr on himself if it is wajib upon him and without the prior consent of the head of the family or guardian even though it is the duty of the latter to pay it on his behalf”: That is, he does not wait for the guardian to give it on his behalf. Instead, he gives it by himself. This is permissible as zakat al-fitr is essentially wajib upon the individual. It is only borne by the guardian due to the issue of dependency.
It becomes wajib at sunset on the night of al-Fitr. Whoever embraces Islam, takes possession of a slave, marries a woman or has a newborn after this night need not pay the zakat al-fitr due on them. He must do so if the above scenarios happen before this night.
The time when zakat al-fitr becomes wajib’. “It becomes wajib at sunset on the night of al-Fitr,” on the last day of Ramadan. When the sun sets and the new moon is sighted, it is the first night of the month of Shawwal. On this night, the charity of al-fitr becomes wajib.
It does not become wajib on the first of the month of Ramadan or at the middle of it. If a person was to die before sunset on the night of al-Fitr, he does not owe anything. On the other hand, if his demise is after the sunset on the night of al-Fitr, his family should pay zakat al-fitr on his behalf as it was wajib upon him.
“Whoever embraces Islam”: That is, after sunset on the night of al-Fitr, it is not wajib that he pays the charity of al-Fitr. This is because the time when paying the zakat was wajib has lapsed.
“Takes possession of a slave”: Similarly, if he had bought the slave or he was given as a gift after sun set on the night of al-Fitr, then zakat is not wajib upon the slave.
“Marries a woman”: If a man makes the marital contract with a woman after sunset on the night of al-Fitr, zakat need not be paid on his wife due to the lapse of time wherein zakat was wajib.
“Or has a newborn”: Zakat al-fitr is not wajib on the newborn baby if he or she is born after sunset on the night of al-Fitr.
“He must do so if the above scenarios happen before this night”: For example, if a person possesses a slave before sunset on the night of al-Fitr, even marginally, it is wajib for him to pay zakat al-fitr on the slave. This is because it was within the time wherein the zakat was wajib.
It is permissible to pay zakat al-fitr two days before ‘Eid though paying it just before prayer on the day of ‘Eid is better. Paying it at other times is disliked. If he fails to do so, it should be paid on a later date and it is considered a violation.
The times in which zakat al-fitr is paid can be categorized into four:
The permissible time: “It is permissible to pay zakat al-fitr two days before ‘Eid”: It is permissible to pay this zakat a day or two days before ‘Eid. A person may pay zakat on the twenty eighth or twenty ninth day of Ramadan. This is based on the notion that whatever is performed nearer to the fixed date, it adopts the rules pertaining to the fixed date. The Companions used to give out zakat al-fitr a day or two before ‘Eid. (Reported by al-Bukhari (2/162), “Ibn ‘Umar used to give it to those who would accept it and they used to give it a day or two before ‘Eid al-Fitr.”) This is because it is much more convenient for the people to do so in this manner. Furthermore, the zakat was given out only slightly earlier.
However, the giving of zakat al-fitr earlier than the twenty eighth is not permissible. This is even before the time wherein zakat becomes wajib and so the prohibition. Moreover, there is no precedence of it being paid that early.
The best time: “Paying it just before prayer on the day of ‘Eid is better”: That is, before one sets out for the ‘Eid prayer. This is the best time to pay zakat al-fitr.
The acceptable time: The rest of the ‘Eid day. It is permissible if a person delays giving zakat al-fitr until after ‘Eid prayer. However, he is missing out on the better methods.
“Paying it at other times is disliked”: Delaying the giving of zakat al-fitr until after the ‘Eid prayer is acceptable. However, it is disliked. This is because a better time was forgone.
Making up for a violation: If the zakat is not given throughout the day of ‘Eid, then one still has to pay it the next day. Missing it on its day is not considered as having discharged one’s duty in its time and he is considered a violator for delaying the giving of zakat.
“If he fails to do so, it should be paid on a later date and it is considered a violation”: Violation of giving zakat al-fitr begins with the end of the day of ‘Eid. It can be given the day after Eid. The fulfilment is now considered a penalty (qada) and is a sin due to the delay in giving the zakat al-fitr.
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