Darul Ifta Ibn Masood

Debtor offsetting his debt with creditor’s Zakaat

· 19 Ramadan 1444 AH1 min readEnglish

Question

Please could Muftisaheb assist with regards to the following scenario:

Person A loans a sum of money to Person B.

After some time, Person A informs Person B that he would like to give Person B a portion of his Zakaat. (No physical cash has been given as yet; Person A simply informed person B that he would like to give Person B some Zakaat money).

Upon hearing this, Person B tells Person A, that Person A should keep all, or a portion, of the zakaat which would’ve been given to Person B, as a repayment of the loan to Person A.

Person B does not specify the amount which should be withheld by Person A, rather, Person B tells Person A to decide how much of Person A’s Zakaat would Person A like to take as a repayment of the loan.

1) Please could Muftisaheb advise if the above scenario is permissible, and if Person A’s Zakaat will be discharged in the above-mentioned manner?

Answer

The Zakaat will not be discharged in the above scenario. It is necessary for person B to first take possession of the Zakaat, and then pay it over to person A, in lieu of the debt.

Answered by
Mufti Mohammed Desai
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Source: Darul Ifta Ibn Masood — https://fataawa.co.za/debtor-offsetting-his-debt-with-creditors-zakaat/
Fatawa SA: https://fatawa.co.za/fatwa/ibnmasood-23498

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