Is it permissible to take from the mother's Zakat to pay off debts, what is the ruling on deducting Zakat from a debt, and who is more entitled to financially support a son who is unable to earn a living?
Source: FtawySummary from Ftawy's records · added here Sep 2, 2026
A father must spend on his poor son who is unable to earn a living. If the father is unable, the obligation transfers to the wealthy mother who is capable of spending. It is not permissible for the mother to give her to her son to pay off his debt and count that as a debt owed by him to her. However, it is permissible for the mother to give her Zakat to her indebted son to pay off his legitimate debts, because those in debt (al-gharimun) are among the categories eligible for Zakat.
Summary from Ftawy's records · added here
Reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
Read the full answer on Ftawyhttps://ftawy.com/en/questions/74011
Where this answer came from
- Source platform
- Ftawy
- Original fatwa ID
- 74011
- Added here
- . This is when the answer was added to El Fatwa, not the fatwa's date.
- Text
- Summary from Ftawy's records, reviewed by El Fatwa's sharia committee.
- Read the full ruling
- Read the full answer on Ftawy