When may zakah be given to parents or children whom one is not obliged to maintain?
2026-10-13
T154 · Ibn Taymiyyah
Shaykh al-Islām Ibn Taymiyyah
شيخ الإسلام أحمد بن تيمية
Original Q&A · Complete source question and answer
Complete original question and answer, 25/90. The separate zakah categories and the inability-to-maintain condition are preserved. Mukātab refers to the historical legal category of an enslaved person under a contract to purchase freedom.
النص العربي
السؤال الأصلي
وسئل رحمه الله عن دفعها إلى والديه، وولده الذين لا تلزمه نفقتهم: هل يجوز أم لا؟
الجواب
الذين يأخذون الزكاة صنفان: صنف يأخذ لحاجته، كالفقير والغارم لمصلحة نفسه.
وصنف يأخذها لحاجة المسلمين، كالمجاهد، والغارم في إصلاح ذات البين، فهؤلاء يجوز دفعها إليهم، وإن كانوا من أقاربه.
وأما دفعها إلى الوالدين إذا كانوا غارمين، أو مكاتبين ففيها وجهان، والأظهر جواز ذلك.
وأما إن كانوا فقراء وهو عاجز عن نفقتهم فالأقوي جواز دفعها إليهم في هذه الحال؛ لأن المقتضي موجود، والمانع مفقود،فوجب العمل بالمقتضي السالم عن المعارض المقاوم.
English translation
English translation prepared for SalafAlSalih.com from the cited Arabic source. It is not an official translation.
Original question
He, may Allah have mercy on him, was asked: May a person give zakah to his parents or children whom he is not obliged to maintain?
Answer
Those who receive zakah fall into two categories. One receives it for personal need, such as a poor person or someone indebted for his own benefit.
The other receives it for a need of the Muslims, such as a fighter in Allah's cause or someone who has incurred debt to reconcile people. It is permissible to give it to such people even if they are one's relatives.
As for giving it to parents who are debtors or who have contracts to purchase their freedom, there are two views; the stronger is that it is permissible.
If they are poor and he is unable to maintain them, the stronger view is that he may give it to them in this situation. The reason for entitlement exists and the impediment is absent, so effect must be given to that reason when it is free of a countervailing consideration.
Source and editorial notes
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā 25/90
مجموع الفتاوى
Majmūʿ al-Fatāwā
Arabic question and complete answer collated with the cited source text and its adjacent question boundaries. Arabic diacritics omitted, display marks removed and honorific glyphs expanded. Browsing headings and scope notes are editorial.