Can Obligatory Expiation (Kaffara) Be Combined with Zakat or Charity?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Ustadh Sufyan Qufi
Question
Can Kaffara for broken fasts be combined with sadaqa or zakat, such as spreading the payment over the last 10 nights of Ramadan with both intentions? Or must Kaffara be given separately since it serves a different purpose?
Answer
In the name of Allah, Most Compassionate, Most Merciful,
I pray this finds you in the best of states.
According to the Hanafi school, if a person deliberately breaks a fast in Ramadan without a valid excuse, the required expiation (kaffara) is to fast for two consecutive lunar months. This is the primary obligation. Only if a person is genuinely unable to fast due to a permanent condition such as illness or old age, may they give a monetary expiation by feeding sixty poor individuals, either two meals each or the equivalent value in food.
This expiation is a debt owed to Allah, Most High, and may be fulfilled in multiple installments, so long as the proper method is followed. [Shurunbulali, Maraqi al-Falah]
It is not permissible to use one’s zakat to fulfill this obligation, because zakat is a separate and independent duty owed to Allah, Most High. The same ruling applies to voluntary charity (sadaqa). What is due as kaffara is a compulsory act, not a voluntary one.
If someone wishes to give additional charity beyond the expiation, they are free to do so and will be rewarded by Allah, Most High. However, that charity must be distinct and in excess of what is owed as kaffara.
The Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give and peace) reported that Allah, Most High, said:
“My servant does not draw near to Me with anything more beloved to Me than the obligations I have enjoined upon him. And My servant continues to draw near to Me with voluntary acts until I love him. And when I love him, I become his hearing with which he hears, his sight with which he sees, his hand with which he strikes, and his foot with which he walks.” [Bukhari]
And Allah knows best.
Wassalam
[Ustadh] Sufyan Qufi
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Ustadh Sufyan Qufi is an advanced seeker of knowledge, originally from Algeria, who grew up in France. He began searching for ways to learn Islam reliably and was disappointed at the answers he found locally.
Then he connected with various traditional teachers and gradually connected with SeekersGuidance. He embarked on his journey of learning through the various teachers at SeekersGuidance, including his mentor Shaykh Faraz Rabbani.
He studied numerous texts in Islamic Law, Theology, Hadith, and other areas with Shaykh Faraz Rabbani and other teachers, including Shaykh Abdurrahman al-Sha‘ar, Shaykh Ali Hani, and others.
He is an active instructor at SeekersGuidance and answers questions through the SeekersGuidance Answers Service.
