Can I Give Zakat to a Dependent Brother and Is Late Intention Valid?

Answered by Shaykh Yusuf Weltch

Question

Is my 22-year-old brother eligible for zakat if he depends on my parents? Does buying a high-end phone invalidate Zakat? Is a delayed intention valid? If invalid, must I repay it as zakat or count it as charity?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.

Suppose your brother does not possess the wealth to the amount of the Zakat threshold of approximately $8,748 (for gold nisab) or approximately $605 (for silver nisab) and does not have possessions beyond his needs that would equate to either of the above two threshold amounts—he is eligible for Zakat.

Buying your brother an iPhone does count as Zakat, as it is still a transferral of wealth. [See: Maydani, al-Lubab fi Sharh al-Kitab]

If you gave your brother the zakat and intended for those funds to be zakat after he had already received it, but before he spent it, the intention would indeed be valid. [Ibid.]

Hope this helps
Allah knows best
[Shaykh] Yusuf Weltch
Checked and Approved by Shaykh 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 at Darul Mustafa in Tarim, Yemen.

There, he completed the memorization of the Quran and his study of Islamic Sciences. Throughout his years of study, he was blessed to learn from many great scholars: Habib Umar bin Hafiz, Habib Kazhim al-Saqqaf, Shaykh ‘Umar bin Husayn al-Khatib, and others.

Upon returning, he joined the SeekersGuidance faculty in the summer of 2019.