Is it permissible to give zakat to one's nephew to pay off his debt, knowing that his parents are well-off, but he has problems with his father, is a student, and mostly lives with his maternal uncles?

It is permissible to give zakat (definition) to a poor, indebted nephew if his debt was incurred for a permissible need, because he is one of those eligible for zakat due to his poverty and debt. Giving it to him is better than giving it to a stranger, as the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Charity given to the poor is a charity, and to a relative, it is both charity and upholding the ties of kinship."