Question:
Assalamu‘alaikum SS Datuk Mufti. What is the ruling of paying zakat fitrah in the beginning or the middle of Ramadhan?
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.
There are several opinions regarding this issue:
- Permissible until a day or two days before Eid. It is impermissible to pay zakat fitrah before this duration according to mazhab Malik and Hanbali.
- It is permissible to pay zakat fitrah starts from the middle of Ramadhan. This is an opinion in mazhab Hanbali.
- It is permissible to be paid at the beginning of the month. This is one of the opinions of the imam in mazhab Hanafi, Syafie and the opinion of mazhab Hanbali.
- It is absolutely permissible to be paid whenever, even before Ramadhan.
- According to Ibn Ruslan, the ruling of delaying paying zakat fitrah until the day of Eid is prohibited, this is agreed by scholars. The majority of scholars state that it is sinful to delay paying zakat fitrah and it is an obligation to be replaced (qadha’). The reason is, zakat fitrah is a right of property and its obligation is not abrogated by the passing of its stated time.