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What is the ruling on disbursing Zakat and Sadaqah funds to a charitable organization that differentiates between Zakat and Sadaqah in its fundraising, invests Sadaqah funds in investment portfolios that are presumed to be non-Islamic, allocates Zakat funds to social solidarity, health, and education, and expands Sadaqah to include fields such as scientific research, arts, literature, and architecture? Is it permissible to disburse Sadaqah under the Zakat category with the intention of Sadaqah if investing Sadaqah in usurious banks is impermissible?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

The recipients of Zakat are restricted to eight categories, and it is not permissible to disburse it to others. As for voluntary charity (Sadaqat al-Tatawwu'), its applications are broader, and it can be spent on whatever the donor specifies, or for the poor and needy, or on charitable projects such as mosques, distributing food, and clothing. It is also permissible to invest voluntary charity funds if the investment is permissible. However, it is not permissible to spend charities or Zakat on what are termed arts and literature, such as music, singing, and prohibited theatrical performances.

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

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