Question:
Assalamu‘alaikum SS Dato’ Mufti. What is ruling of paying zakat through proxy?
Answer:
Waalaikumussalam wbt,
Alhamdulillah, praise and thanks to Allah for the countless blessings He has blessed us all with. Blessings and salutations to the Prophet Muhammad PBUH, his family, companions and all those that follow his teachings to the day of judgement.
The prioritized method of paying zakat is for the one paying the zakat to distribute it to the rightful recipients himself, except if the zakat is given to the responsible government bodies in handling zakat as explained previously.
Paying zakat can also be done through a proxy. The reason is, zakat is a responsibility related to property. It is permissible to perform any transactions related to property through a proxy. Such as, in paying off debts, buying and returning something that was borrowed or kept back through a proxy.
Hence, it is permissible for the owner of the property to have a representative (as a proxy) to handle the responsibility on his behalf. The proxy can even be from the disbelievers and already mumayyiz children on the condition that if he chooses disbeliever or children as his proxy, he himself must determine the recipients of his zakat.