Taken from: "Ahkam wa Masail in the Light of the Qur’an and Hadith", Volume 02
Can a two-year-old debt owed by a mosque be paid using zakat funds?
✦ The Noble Qur’an explicitly outlines eight categories of zakat recipients, and a mosque is not among them. Allah ﷻ says:
إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّـهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ اللَّـهِ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
(Surah al-Tawbah: 60)
Translation:
"Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the stranded traveler – an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise."
Among the categories listed above, a mosque as an institution does not qualify. Zakat is meant to directly aid eligible individuals, such as the poor, the needy, and the indebted. It is not designed for institutional expenses like mosque debts.
Even if the mosque has an outstanding loan, it is not permissible to use zakat funds for its repayment, as this would be diverting zakat from its rightful recipients as specified in the Qur’an.
① The mosque is not included among the recipients of zakat mentioned in Surah al-Tawbah (9:60).
② Zakat funds cannot be used to repay the mosque’s debt.
③ Zakat must be distributed to eligible individuals, not for institutional or construction-related liabilities.
Wallāhu Aʿlam.
❀ Question:
Can a two-year-old debt owed by a mosque be paid using zakat funds?
❀ Answer:
✦ The Noble Qur’an explicitly outlines eight categories of zakat recipients, and a mosque is not among them. Allah ﷻ says:
إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّـهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِّنَ اللَّـهِ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
(Surah al-Tawbah: 60)
Translation:
"Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the stranded traveler – an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise."
✿ Analysis:
Among the categories listed above, a mosque as an institution does not qualify. Zakat is meant to directly aid eligible individuals, such as the poor, the needy, and the indebted. It is not designed for institutional expenses like mosque debts.
Even if the mosque has an outstanding loan, it is not permissible to use zakat funds for its repayment, as this would be diverting zakat from its rightful recipients as specified in the Qur’an.
✔ Summary:
① The mosque is not included among the recipients of zakat mentioned in Surah al-Tawbah (9:60).
② Zakat funds cannot be used to repay the mosque’s debt.
③ Zakat must be distributed to eligible individuals, not for institutional or construction-related liabilities.
Wallāhu Aʿlam.
