Zakat Money on Commission: A Juristic Study

By: Mufti Muhammad Abdul Hameed Shakir Qasmi

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, and blessings and peace be upon the Master of Messengers, and upon all his family and companions. To proceed:

After considering all the details of the issue under discussion, the explicitness of the Quranic texts, the guidance of the Prophetic traditions, and the clarifications of the jurists of the Ummah, it becomes fully evident that Zakat is a magnificent act of worship whose foundation is not merely based on financial payment but rather on trust, honesty, correct transfer of ownership, and consideration of the objectives of Sharia (Al-Tawbah: 60), and in which even the slightest carelessness can lead to transgression against the rights of the poor and a disruption in the spirit of worship (Radd al-Muhtar, vol. 2, p. 344).

It is an established fact that the legitimacy of Zakat is for the purification of the soul, the cleansing of wealth, and the establishment of social justice (Al-Tawbah: 103), and therefore, the Holy Quran has mentioned it along with prayer, clarifying its religious centrality (Al-Baqarah: 43), and also limited its recipients with the style of restriction “إِنَّمَا” so that no one expands its scope based on their opinion or apparent expediency (Al-Tawbah: 60). So, the institutions or individuals who deduct Zakat money as commission, fees, or administrative expenses before the transfer of ownership, in fact, disregard the limitations of this Quranic restriction, even though the jurists have clarified that the transfer of ownership to the poor is a condition for the validity of Zakat (Radd al-Muhtar, vol. 2, p. 344), and it is not permissible to dispose of someone else's property without permission (Al-Mabsut, vol. 14, p. 33).

Furthermore, regarding the status of “العاملین علیھا” mentioned in the Holy Quran (Al-Tawbah: 60), the jurists of the Ummah have clarified in its explanation that the 'Aamil (worker) is the one appointed by the Imam or Sultan (Al-Hidayah, vol. 1, p. 112), and this clarification is also found in Bada'i al-Sana'i and Al-Mughni (Bada'i al-Sana'i, vol. 2, p. 45; Al-Mughni, vol. 2, p. 509). Therefore, including the *ambassadors* of the current private institutions in this category without evidence is an inappropriate analogy, and interpreting Sharia terms based on customary meanings is against scholarly integrity. Understanding the delicacy of this point is very important, because if everyone who collects Zakat is considered an “Aamil,” then the significance of the Quranic restriction no longer remains (Al-Tawbah: 60).

*However, if someone (a student) appoints an institution as their agent to collect Zakat* and explicitly permits them to take a *reasonable* fee for collecting the Zakat money, then this matter will be permissible under the principles of agency, because “الوكيل أمين” (Bada'i al-Sana'i, vol. 6, p. 27), and in such a case, the entitlement to the fee is established by the contract of agency, not as a recipient of Zakat. However, it is also necessary that this entire transaction and agreement be with transparency, and the determination of the fee should be clear and regulated so that the door to doubts remains closed, because it is mentioned in the Hadith: “الحلال بين والحرام بين…” (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab al-Buyu').

Religious institutions must exercise special caution in this matter, because the system of schools is mostly based on Zakat and donations, and if the representatives are paid on a percentage basis from the Zakat itself, then on one hand, it reduces the rights of deserving students, and on the other hand, it also violates the intention of the Zakat payers (Radd al-Muhtar, vol. 2, p. 344).

In the aforementioned matter, if the representative's salary is paid from a non-Zakat fund and the Zakat is spent entirely on the deserving, then this is the best, permissible, and cautious approach (Al-Hidayah, vol. 1, p. 112). This fulfills the requirements of honesty, transparency, and trust.

In principle, the requirement of the objectives of Sharia is that the Zakat system should be for the assistance of the poor, social balance, and spiritual purification (Al-Tawbah: 103), not for institutional interests or financial gains. The rule of “Sadd al-Dhara'i” (blocking the means) also indicates that any means that affects the purpose of worship should be prevented (Al-Muwafaqat, vol. 4, p. 195). Therefore, all such methods that transform Zakat into a commercial mold are contrary to caution, even if they have apparent legal or customary justification.

In conclusion, three matters should always be kept in mind when paying Zakat: Firstly, correct and complete transfer of ownership (Radd al-Muhtar, vol. 2, p. 344); Secondly, limiting the recipients and adhering to the Quranic restriction (Al-Tawbah: 60); Thirdly, observing intention, sincerity, and piety (Sahih Bukhari, Kitab al-Iman). If these three principles are observed, then not only will the payment of Zakat be Sharia-compliant, but its spiritual and social blessings will also be manifested.

But in the present era, many heads and some responsible people of Madrasas, due to ignorance or greed for money, are taking 50 percent of the amount received from Zakat in the name of labor and are not delivering it to the deserving, and some people think that we are running the Madrasa, now we will continue to give whatever the Madrasa needs in a year, and whatever amount is left will be ours because of our hard work. This is extreme ignorance and something that destroys the meaning of Zakat, so one should avoid fixing wages on a percentage basis. The best and most preferred thing is that you fix a wage, for example, ten thousand, twenty thousand, or whatever amount it is.

Therefore, every Zakat payer should see under what system the Zakat taker is taking it, whether he has a Sharia system of transfer of ownership or making the needy the owner, or whether he is collecting the money for his shop, his house, and his property.

Therefore, it is necessary for the people of Madrasas, the administrators of institutions, and the benefactors to exercise extreme caution, transparent accounting, clear agency, and complete transfer of ownership in the matter of Zakat, so that the rights of the poor are protected, the spirit of worship is maintained, and there is no accountability at the time of accountability before Allah Almighty (Al-Tawbah: 103). This course of action is the most cautious, safest, and closest to piety, and in it lies the success of this world and the hereafter, and Allah knows best.