Fiqh al-Zakat al-Fitr

Fiqh al-Zakat al-Fitr — The Obligation of Fitr Charity: Purifying the Fast Before the Eid Prayer

فِقهُ زَكَاةِ الفِطر — وُجُوبُ صَدَقَةِ الفِطر: تَطهِيرُ الصِّيَامِ قَبلَ صَلَاةِ العِيد

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Zakat al-Fitr (زَكَاةُ الفِطر — also Sadaqat al-Fitr; 'the charity of breaking the fast') is an obligatory purification payment due at the end of Ramadan, before the Eid al-Fitr prayer. The Prophet Ibn Abbas narrated: 'Allah's Messenger made Zakat al-Fitr obligatory — as a purification of the fasting person from idle speech and obscenity, and as food for the poor.' Its amount is one *sa'* (approximately 2.5-3 kg) of the staple food of the region — dates, wheat, rice — per person in the household, including infants and dependents. Crucially, it must be given BEFORE the Eid prayer: given after is ordinary sadaqa, not Zakat al-Fitr. Its dual purpose: purify the spiritual residue of fasting's lapses, and ensure the poor can celebrate Eid with food.

The Obligation and Its Basis

Zakat al-Fitr is established by hadith, not Quran directly — making its fard (obligatory) status technically different from the annual zakat on wealth (which has explicit Quranic basis). Nevertheless, the scholarly consensus (ijma’) of all four Sunni schools and Shia jurisprudence is that it is obligatory on every Muslim who possesses more than their day’s basic needs on Eid morning.

Ibn Umar narrated: “The Prophet made it obligatory — a sa’ of dates or a sa’ of barley — upon the slave and the free man, male and female, young and old among the Muslims.” (Bukhari)

The Amount: One Sa’

One sa’ is a volumetric measure: four mudds, where a mudd is approximately a cupped double-handful of grain. Contemporary equivalents range from 2 to 3 kg depending on the school:

Maliki/Shafi’i/Hanbali: one sa’ = ~2.5 kg
Hanafi: one sa’ = ~3.3 kg of grain (and permitted in monetary equivalent)

The food type should be the staple of the region. In contemporary practice, most scholars permit paying the cash equivalent of the food’s market value.

The Critical Timing

Before the Eid prayer is the ruling’s most distinctive feature. The hadith of Ibn Abbas explicitly distinguishes:

Paid before prayer: Zakat al-Fitr (accepted)
Paid after prayer: ordinary sadaqa (valid charity but the fard is missed)

The accepted practice is to pay it on the last night of Ramadan (eve of Eid) or the morning of Eid before going to the prayer.

Recipients

The same eight categories as annual zakat (Quran 9:60): the poor (fuqara’), the destitute (masakin), those working to collect it, reconciliation of hearts, freeing captives, debtors, for the cause of Allah, and travelers. In practice, it is most commonly given to the local poor to ensure they have Eid food.

In Bohra Practice

Dawoodi Bohras pay Zakat al-Fitr through the Dawat structure before the Eid prayer. The Dai and his office typically announce the amount annually based on local food costs.