Is it permissible to pay Zakat ul Fitr in cash?

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It is permissible to pay Zakat al-Fitr in cash if that is more beneficial to the recipient. There is no doubt that peopleโ€™s need for money is greater than that for food during the current economic situation.

Giving Zakat al-Fitr in cash is a view that dates back to the early generations, as has been narrated by Abu Is-แธฅฤq al-Subฤโ€˜i, one of the most knowledgeable of the Tabi’een (those who succeeded the Companions), who said, โ€œI came in contact with them giving Zakat in cash instead of food.โ€ And al-Bukhari included a chapter in his Saheeh entitled โ€œZakat Paid in Kind,โ€ in which Tฤwoos related that Muโ€˜ฤdh (may Allah be pleased with him) said to the people of Yemen, โ€œBring me charity in kind: clothing instead of barley and grain. It will be easier for you and better for the Prophetโ€™s Companions in Madinah.โ€ This proves the permissibility of distributing (Zakat) based on its value. This was also applied by the rightly-guided caliph โ€˜Umar b. โ€˜Abd al-โ€˜Azeez, because he would instruct his governors to collect it in cash.

This is also the view of the Hanafis, and it was the opinion of Shaykh al-Islฤm Ibn Taymiyyah, of the Hanbalis, so long as it is more beneficial for the needy.

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