Zakat to non-Muslims

22-5-2001 | IslamWeb

Question:

My neighbor is non-Muslim and he is very poor, sometimes his wife and children ask for some food or cash, old clothes. Can I give them Zakat?
Answer:

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) is His slave and Messenger.

 

It is unlawful for you to give your Zakat to your neighbors as long as they are non-Muslims, unless the objective is to soften their hearts so that they become Muslims. The scholars state that in this respect the Muslim ruler is the person who makes the decision to give them as he is the only one who can judge whether or not there is a benefit in giving them Zakat.

Anyway, we believe that you should not give it to them now and you should give your Zakat to its legitimate Muslim recipients. But if you feel like giving some alms (optional charity) to your non-Muslim neighbors, then you could do that.

The Prophet sallallaahu `alayhi wa sallam ( may Allaah exalt his mention ) urged us to be kind to our neighbors.

Allah knows best.

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