8- GIVING ZAKAT TO DESERVING RECIPIENTS
GIVING ZAKAT TO DESERVING RECIPIENTS
It is unlawful to delay paying what is due from a zakat-payable amount of property when:
a) it has been possessed for one year;
b) one can find the (eight) categories (of eligible recipients, or some of them) so as to be able to pay it;
c) and the property is present (within 5l km. l50 mi.);
unless one is awaiting a poor person more deserving than those present, such as a relative (of the person paying zakat whom he is not obliged to support), a neighbor, or a more righteous or needy person (than those present. Under these circumstances it is not unlawful to delay giving it because there is an excuse, unless withholding it involves considerable harm for those present).
PAYING ZAKAT IN ADVANCE
Zakat, on all types of property that ‘a year’s possession of the zakat minimum makes giving obligatory, may be played for the current year (alone) before the year’s end whenever the property owner possesses the zakat minimum,
This zakat in advance is considered valid only when the year ends and:
a) the recipient it still among the types eligible for zakat (meaning, for example, that his state has not changed from poverty to wealth);
b) the zakat giver is still obliged to pay it;
c) and the property is still as it was (i.e. the zakat minimum still exists and has not been destroyed or sold),
The zakat in advance is not valid if (before the end of the year):
1. (non-(a) above) the poor person who accepted it dies, or becomes financially independent for some other reason than having accepted the zakat;
2. (non- (b» the giver dies;
3. or (non-(c» the property diminishes to less than the zakat minimum by more than the amount given in advance (such as when the giver takes out 5 dirhams as zakat in advance from 200 dirhams, but his holdings are subsequently reduced by 10 (to 190 dirhams, which is less than the zakat minimum», even when this reduction is because of sale.
When the zakat in advance is not valid, the giver may take it back if he has explained that the money has been given in advance (by merely having said, “This is my zakat in advance,” or if the recipient knows it). If what was given as zakat still exists, the recipient gives it back together with any increment organically connected with it, such as additional weight gained by a head of livestock while in the recipient’s possession. But the property owner is not entitled to take back an increment that is not organically connected to the zakat, such as its offspring (born from the animal while in the recipient’s possession).
If the zakat given in advance no longer exists, then the giver is entitled to take back a substitute (whether it be the substitute for a commodity that is fungible (mithli), such as silver dirhams, or whether for a nonfungible (mutaqawwim) commodity such as sheep or goats, in which case its price is the market value at the time the zakat in advance was accepted, not the time it ceased to exist).
After the return of the zakat in advance, the zakat giver pays the zakat from his wealth again if he is still obliged to.
The zakat in advance that is paid from the zakat-payable amount (nisab) is considered as if still part of the giver’s property (only in respect to calculating whether the giver’s total property equals the zakat-payable amount. It is not actually considered as still belonging to the zakat giver, since the recipient is entitled to dispose of it by sale or otherwise while it is in his possession). Thus, if the zakat giver paid a sheep in advance as zakat on 120 head, and one of the sheep then gave birth to a new lamb, the giver would now be obliged to pay another sheep (it being as if he owns the (next highest) zakat-payable amount of 121 head).
AUTHORIZING ANOTHER TO DISTRIBUTE ONE’S ZAKAT
It is permissible for the zakat giver to personally distribute his zakat to eligible recipients or to authorize an agent (wakil) to do so.
It is permissible for the zakat giver to pay his zakat to the imam (i.e. the caliph (025) or his representative), and this is superior unless the imam is unjust, in which case it is better to distribute it oneself.
THE PRAYER OF THE RECIPIENT FOR THE ZAKAT GIVER
It is recommended for the poor person (receiving zakat when the owner is distributing it) or the agent assigned to deliver the zakat to recipients (if the imam has gathered it by means of agents to distribute to the poor) to supplicate for the giver, saying, “May Allah reward you for what you have given, bless you in what you have retained, and purify it for you.”
THE INTENTION OF ZAKAT
Making the intention of zakat is a necessary condition for the validity of giving it. The intention is made when zakat is paid to the poor person or the one being authorized to distribute it, and one must intend giving it as the zakat of one’s property. (It is permissible to make the intention before paying the money.) When the owner has made this intention, it is not necessary that the agent distributing it also make an intention before giving it (because the owner’s intention is sufficient, whether the agent is an ordinary individual or is the ruler. It is also permissible for the owner to authorize an agent to both make the intention and distribute the zakat).
It is recommended that the imam dispatch a zakat worker, (to collect zakat funds from those obliged to pay, to make this easier for them. Such an agent must be) an upright Muslim who knows the rulings of zakat, and who is not of the Hashimi or Muttalibi clans of Quraysh.
THE EIGHT CATEGORIES OF RECIPIENTS
It is obligatory to distribute one’s zakat among eight categories of recipients (meaning that zakat goes to none besides them), one-eighth of the zakat to each category.
(In the Hanafi school, it is valid for the giver to distribute his zakat to all of the categories, some of them, or to confine himself to just one of them (al-Lubab fi sharh al-Kitab (y88), 1.155).)
THE POOR
The first category is the poor, meaning someone who:
a) does not have enough to suffice himself (such as not having any wealth at all, or having some, but (he is unable to earn any, and) what he has is insufficient to sustain him to the end of his probable life expectancy if it were distributed over the probable amount of remaining time; insufficient meaning it is less than half of what he needs. If he requires ten dirhams a day, for example, but the amount he has when divided by the time left in his probable life expectancy is four dirhams a day or less, not paying for his food, clothing, housing, and whatever he cannot do without. to a degree suitable to someone of his standing without extravagance or penury, then he is poor-all of Which applies as well to the needs of those he must support.) (A mechanic’s tools or scholar’s books are not sold or considered part of his money, since he needs them to earn a living);
b) and is either:
1. unable to earn his living by work suitable to him (such as a noble profession befitting him (given his health and social position), as opposed to work unbefitting him, which is considered the same as not having any: If such an individual were an important personage unaccustomed to earning a living by physical labor, he would be considered “poor.” This also includes being able to do work suitable to one, but not finding someone to employ one);
2. or is able to earn his living, but to do so· would keep him too busy to engage in attaining knowledge of Sacred Law. (Nawawi notes, “If able to earn a living at work befitting him except that he is engaged in attaining knowledge of some subject in Sacred Law such that turning to earning a living would prevent the acquisition of this knowledge, then it is permissible for him to take zakat because the attainment of knowledge is a communal obligation, though zakat is not lawful for someone able to earn a living who cannot acquire knowledge, even if he lives at a school. What we have just mentioned is the most correct and well-known position. Darami mentions three positions concerning someone engaged in attaining religious knowledge:
that he deserves charity even when able to earn a living;
that he does not deserve it:
and that if he is an outstanding student who can be expected to develop a good comprehension of the Sacred Law and benefit the Muslims thereby, then he deserves charity, but if not, then he does not.
“Darami mentioned this in the chapter of ‘Voluntary Charity‘ ” (al-Majmu’ (y108), 6.190-91).)
But if one’s religious devotions are what keeps one too busy to earn a living, one is not considered poor.
Someone separated from his money by at least 81 km. l50 mi. is eligible for zakat. (This was in the past. In our day it is fitter to say that he must be far from his money in terms of common acknowledgement.) (Such a person’s absent property is as if nonexistent, and his “poverty” continues until the money is present. Likewise, someone owed money on a debt not yet due who does not have any other money is given zakat when it is distributed (to suffice him) until the debt becomes due.)
People whose needs are met by the expenditures of those who are obliged to support them such as their husbands or families are not given zakat (for poverty) (though it is permissible for a third party to give zakat to such a dependent by virtue of the dependent’s belonging to some category other than the poor or those short of money (def: below), as when the person belongs to a category such as travelers needing money (or those whose hearts are to be reconciled).
THOSE SHORT OF MONEY
The second category is people short of money, meaning someone who has something to spend for his needs but it is not enough, as when he needs five dirhams, but he only has three or four. The considerations applicable to the poor person also apply to someone short of money (namely, that he is given zakat if he cannot earn a living by work befitting him, or if he can earn a living but attainment of knowledge of Sacred Law prevents his doing so; though if he is able to earn a living but extra devotions prevent him from doing so, then he may not take zakat).
HOW MUCH THE POOR ARE GIVEN
A person who is poor or short of money is given as much as needed of tools and materials (if he has a trade, such as the tools of a carpenter) with which he can earn a living, or property with which he can engage in trade (if a merchant), each according to the demands of his profession. This amount varies, depending on whether, for example, he is a jeweler, clothier, grocer, or other.
If the recipient has no trade (i.e. is unable to do any work, whether for wages, by trading, or other), then he is given enough zakat to fulfill his needs from the present till the end of his probable life expectancy (based on (the average lifespan for someone like him in) that locality). Another position is that such a person is given enough for just one year.
These measures are obligatory when abundant zakat funds are available, whether the imam distributes them or a property owner. But if there is not much zakat available (meaning if the owner or imam distributes funds that are too little to last the poor person for his probable life expectancy or for even one year), it is distributed as is, an eighth to each category.
ZAKAT WORKERS
The third category consists of zakat workers, the above-mentioned agents dispatched by the imam. These include the person collecting it, the clerk (recording what the owners give), the person who matches the payees to recipients, and the one who distributes it to recipients.
The zakat workers receive an eighth of the zakat funds. If this amount is more than it would cost to hire someone to do their job, then they return the excess for distribution to the other categories of recipients. But if less (than the cost of hiring someone), then enough is taken from the zakat funds to make up the difference. All of this applies only if the imam (caliph) is distributing the zakat (and has not allotted a fee to the zakat workers from the Muslim common fund (bayt aI-mal). If the property owner is distributing the zakat (or if the imam has allotted the workers a fee from the common fund) then the zakat funds are divided solely among the other categories of recipients.
THOSE WHOSE HEARTS ARE TO BE RECONCILED
The fourth category is those whose hearts are to be reconciled. If they are non-Muslims, they are not given zakat, but if Muslims, then they may be given it (so that their certainty may increase, or if they are recent converts to Islam and are alienated from their kin).
Those to be reconciled include:
1. the chief personages of a people (with weak Islamic intentions) whose Islam may be expected to improve, or whose peers may be expected to enter Islam;
2. or the heads of a people who collect zakat for us from Muslims living near them who refuse to pay it, or who fight an enemy for us at considerable expense and trouble to themselves.
THOSE PURCHASING THEIR FREEDOM
The fifth category is slaves who are purchasing their freedom from their owners. They are given enough to do so if they do not have the means.
THOSE IN DEBT
The sixth category is those who have debts (and they are of three types):
1. A person who incurs debts in order to settle trouble (between two people, parties, or tribes) involving bloodshed (as when there has been a killing but it is not known who the killer is, and trouble has arisen between the two sides) or to settle trouble concerning property (such as bearing the expense when trouble occurs over it) is given zakat even if he is affluent.
2. A person who incurs debts to support himself or his dependents is· given zakat if he is poor, but not if affluent. If he incurs a debt (for something lawful) but spends it on something unlawful, and then repents (and is felt to be sincere in this, and the original reason is known to have been something lawful), then he is given zakat.
3. (And a third type, not mentioned by the author, which (given persons P, Q, and R) is When R incurs a debt by guaranteeing (daman) to P that Q will pay P (what Q owes him). If R finds that neither he nor Q can pay, then R is given zakat (because he has gone into debt in order to guarantee Q’s debt), even if the reason R agreed to guarantee Q was not charity (but was rather that Q would pay him back).)
THOSE FIGHTING FOR ALLAH
The seventh category is those fighting for Allah, meaning people engaged in Islamic military operations for whom no salary has been allotted in the army roster (but who are volunteers for jihad without remuneration). They are given enough to suffice them for the operation, even if affluent; of weapons, mounts, clothing, and expenses (for the duration of the journey, round trip, and the time they spend there, even if prolonged. Though nothing has been mentioned here of the expense involved in supporting such people’s families during this period, it seems clear that they should also be given it).
TRAVELLERS NEEDING MONEY
The eighth category is the traveler in need of money, meaning one who is passing among us (i.e. through a town in Muslim lands where zakat is collected), or whose journey was not undertaken for the purpose of disobeying Allah. If such a person is in need, he is given enough to cover his personal expenses and transportation, even if he possesses money back home.
PAYING ZAKAT TO RECIPIENTS
A person who qualifies as a member of two or more of the above categories is only given zakat for one of them.
When the (eight) categories of recipients exist in the town where zakat is collected, it is unlawful and invalid to give it to recipients elsewhere (as it must be paid to those present if the property owner is distributing his own zakat. The other schools of jurisprudence permit giving it elsewhere). But if the imam (caliph) is distributing the zakat, he may give it to recipients in a different place.
If the zakat giver’s property is in the desert, or none of the eight categories of eligible zakat recipients exist in his own town, then the zakat should be distributed in the nearest town.
Each category of recipients must receive an equal share, one-eighth of the total (though one may give various individuals within a particular category more or less), except for zakat workers, who receive only their due wage.
If one of the categories does not exist in one’s town, their eighth is distributed over the other categories such that each of them gets one seventh. If two categories of recipients do not exist in the town, then each of the remaining categories receive a sixth of the zakat, and so on (such that if there were only one category in town, all the zakat would be paid to it).
It is obligatory to give zakat to every individual member of a category if the owner is distributing zakat and the individuals are of a limited, known number, or if the imam is distributing zakat and it is possible to give it out person by person and include them all because of the abundance of funds.
If the owner is distributing zakat and the recipients in each category are not of a limited, known number, then the fewest permissible for him to give to in one category is three people, except for the category of zakat workers, in which a single person is enough.
It is recommended to give one’s zakat to relatives other than those one is obliged to support.
It is recommended to distribute zakat to recipients in proportion to their needs, giving someone who needs 100 dirhams, for example, half of what one gives to someone who needs 200.
It is not permissible to give zakat to a non-Muslim, or to someone whom one is obliged to support, such as a wife or family member.
It is not valid for one to give zakat to a poor person on condition that he return it to one to pay off a debt he owes, or to tell the recipient, “I hereby make the money you owe me zakat, so keep it for yourself.” But it is permissible:
1. for the giver to pay his zakat (to a poor person who owes him money) when the giver’s intention is that the recipient should pay him back with it;
2. for the zakat giver to tell the poor person, “Pay me the money you owe me so that I can give it to you as zakat”;
3. or for the poor person to tell his creditor, “Give me (0: zakat) so that I can pay it back to you (for the debt I owe you)”;
though it is not obligatory to fulfill these promises (meaning the outcomes alluded to in (2) and (3) above).
All of the above rulings concerning zakat apply to the zakat of ‘Eid al-Fitr (in details, in giving it to deserving recipients (the eight categories described in this section), and in giving it in advance). It is permissible for a group of people to pool their zakat of ‘Eid al-Fitr, mix it, and collectively distribute it, or for one of them to distribute it with the others’ permission. (The author mentions this to inform people that anyone can distribute their zakat of ‘Eid al-Fitr to all categories of recipients, no matter how little it is.)
(Source: The reliance of the traveller, revised edition, Edited and Translated by Nuh Ha Mim Keller)
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