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Can Zakat al-Mal be given to needy relatives such as a grandmother, mother, or the wife of a grandfather, when they have a provider? And what is the authenticity of the hadith "Give it to your closest relatives"? And what is the ruling concerning past years for which Zakat was paid without proper calculation?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The aforementioned Hadith is authentic, and in it, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said to Abu Talha al-Ansari: "I think you should give it to your closest relatives," and this was concerning voluntary charity (sadaqat al-tatavvu'). As for Zakat, it is permissible to give it to poor relatives if they are not among one's ascendants or descendants, such as brothers, maternal uncles, and paternal uncles. It is also permissible to give it to your grandfather's wife if she is poor and not your grandmother. You must make up for what you spent on your maternal grandmother and on your grandfather's wife if they were already provided for by someone else's maintenance.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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