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Is it necessary to repeat the expiations (kaffarat) paid to a non-Muslim sheikh, given the unavailability of funds to issue them?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

It is not permissible to appoint a non-Muslim as an agent for distributing expiation (kaffarah); because he is not trustworthy concerning matters of Sharia, nor does he know who is deserving of it. Many scholars have explicitly stated that it is not permissible to appoint a disbeliever as an agent for zakat. Consequently, what was given to that non-Muslim person does not count as expiation. The expiation must be paid again to the deserving poor. If the money is not available, then whoever is obligated to pay the expiation must fast three days for each oath, and there is no sin upon him for what has occurred.

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

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