How Can I Fulfill a Vow to Give Charity If I Can No Longer Afford It?

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

I made vows to give charity if certain prayers were answered, but I cannot afford to fulfill them now. Is fasting for 3 days sufficient as expiation? Must the fasts be consecutive?

Answer

If you audibly took the name of Allah Most High when vowing to give charity, then the vow is valid and must be fulfilled, if possible.
If you are unable to give the charity as vowed, the following can be performed instead as an expiation:
1) Freeing a slave, or
2) Provide ten poor people clothing (sufficient enough to pray in) or
3) Feed ten poor people two meals a day for ten days

if one is unable to do any of these, they must: Fast for three consecutive days. [Ibn ‘Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]

Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shyakh Faraz Rabbani

Shaykh Yusuf Weltch is a teacher of Arabic, Islamic law, and spirituality. After accepting Islam in 2008, he went on to study at Darul Uloom Seminary in New York and completed his studies in Darul Mustafa in Tarim, Yemen. There he completed the memorization of the Qur’an and his study of the Islamic Sciences. Throughout his years of study he was blessed to learn from many great scholars: al-Habib Umar bin Hafiz, al-Habib Kazhim al-Saqqaf, al-Shaykh Umar bin Husayn al-Khatib, and others. Upon returning, he joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.