Questions about Interest, Zakah and Sadaqah

Question

I have some questions regarding Zakaat and Interest which i would like to request you kindly guide me on:

INTEREST
1. What should one do with interest earnings?
2. Can interest earnings be given to a Muslim?
3. Often we hear that you can build toilets using the funds. Can we build a toilet and hand it over to an individual who can maintain the place and charge a fee/make a livelihood out of this.
4. Can we use the money to maintain a public road outside ones premises which is used by public and themselves.

ZAKAAT
1. Who is eligible to receive zakaat?
2. In a dire situation, can Zakaat be given to Non-Muslims?
3. If an individual owns more than one property, should he give zakaat on the value of the property apart from the rental earned as Zakaat is eligible on surplus wealth?

SADQAH/LILAH

Can one take saqah and niyaz as Lilah, if not then please guide where Lilah funds should be used?

Answer

Riba (usury and interest) is Haram and anyone who denies the fact that it is forbidden is a kafir. The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) cursed the one who gives, the one who takes, the one who witnesses and the one who writes the contract of usury, as per the narration of Sayyiduna Jaabir (Allah is pleased with him) recorded by Imam Muslim. In the narration recorded in Mishkaat Al-Masaabeeh, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said that one dirham of usury taken on purpose is worse than committing zina (adultery and fornication) thirty six times.

1. If a person possesses Haram wealth then he must discharge it all to the poor, without the intention of any reward. The person must not assume that he is doing a favour for the poor. In fact, the poor are doing him a favour by taking it. Once a person has given the unlawful wealth to the poor, he/she must seek forgiveness and then hope for the mercy of Allah. One must not intend to receive reward when discharging unlawful wealth to the poor. It is mentioned in Fatawa Ridawiyyah: “It is Haram to use it on himself and it is kufr to intend reward when giving it to the poor.”
2. The earnings from interest should be given to poor Muslims.
3. It is not permissible to use unlawful wealth to make toilets. It must be given in the ownership of the poor. Once the poor person becomes the owner, then he/she may use the money to make toilets.
4. This is also not permissible which is already clear from the answers above, and Allah knows best.

The answers for the questions regarding Zakah are as follows:

1. Those who are eligible to take Zakah are mentioned in Surah Tawbah, verse sixty. They are:
   1. Faqeer – this is a person who does have something but not enough that Zakah becomes obligatory upon him. He may have enough to cloth, shelter and feed his family but not so much that he becomes the owner of a Nisaab (the threshold for Zakah becoming obligatory); or he does have so much wealth but he needs to use it for his necessities of livelihood, such as a house to live in and a form of transport for travelling etc.
   2. Miskeen – this is a person who does not have anything. He has to beg in order to cloth and feed himself. It is permissible to beg for such a person.
   3. Aamil – this is a person who has been appointed by the Muslim ruler to collect Zakah from the people. He can be given a share from the Zakah he has collected, as long as this does not exceed half of what he has collected. Those people who set out to collect charity for Masaajid and Madaaris are not Aamileen, even if they have been appointed by the Masaajid or Madaaris or even if they have been appointed by a Mufti.
   4. Riqaab – this is a half freed slave who has been given leave by his master to go out and earn in order to pay for his freedom. Zakah can be given to such a person so that he can pay for his freedom.
   5. Gaarim – this is a person who is in so much debt that if he pays his debt, he will not be an owner of a nisaab.
   6. In the path of Allah – this is a person who has decided to leave his worldly life for the Deen. For example, a person wishes to go to Jihaad or a person wishes to become an Aalim of the deen, then it is permissible to give Zakah to him, although he is capable of earning for himself. A student of the Deen can also ask for Zakah from people. If a person wishes to go for Hajj but cannot afford it, then it is permissible to give Zakah to him/her; however, for such a person it is not permissible to ask for Zakah from people.
   7. Ibn Sabeel – this is a person who is travelling and does not have any money or does have money, but due to travelling and being away from home, does not have access to his/her wealth. Such a person can only take the amount that fulfils his/her need.
2. It is not permissible to give Zakah to a disbeliever. It is mentioned in Hidayah that a unanimous consensus has ruled out the permissibility to give Zakah to the disbelievers. In dire need, one may give voluntary charity if he deems beneficial.
3. A person is not obliged to pay Zakah on any property, as long as he did not buy it to sell. If a person bought a property for him to live in, he does not have to pay Zakah on that property. If a person bought a house to rent out, he does not have to pay Zakah on that property. He must pay Zakah on the savings he has from the rental income. One must pay Zakah on a property, if he bought it with the intention of selling. If a person bought a property with the intention that he will only sell it if he receives a good offer, even then he does not have to pay Zakah on the property. If he bought the property to rent out or to live in, and then later decided to sell it, he still does not have to pay Zakah on that property. However, when he does sell the property, Zakah will be due on the income from the sale at the end of his year on the amount that he has left, and Allah knows best.

Sadaqah can be obligatory (Fard) like Zakah or necessary (Waajib) like Fitr or voluntary (Nafl) like giving gifts to people. Usually when Sadaqah is said on its own, in our custom it is regarded as voluntary charity. This is also known as Li-Allah or Niyaaz in our custom. Any Muslim, rich or poor, is eligible to take and use voluntary charity. Even when a person buys a gift for his partner, it is a voluntary charity. It is better to give this Li-Allah to the family and relatives, neighbours, Scholars of the Deen, friends, Masaajid and Madaaris etc. One must remember that if Allah has given wealth to a person, then the poor have a right of receiving a share from it. A person is judged in the court of Allah by the percentage of his wealth that he has given in the path of Allah, not by the amount. A person who owns a hundred pounds and has given a pound in the path of Allah is better than the person who owns a million and has given a thousand. Every man who hoards excess wealth for the future will be questioned on the day of Judgement why he did not distribute to those that needed it.

And Allah knows best.

Zahid Hussain Al-Qadiri
(Beggar at the doorstep of Scholars)
26th Ramadan Al-Kareem 1436 AH