Third Pillar
Zakat is a pillar of Islam, and it is also one of the topics about which the most approximations circulate. Who can receive it? What is the difference between Zakat al-Mal and Zakat al-Fitr? Can it be paid in Algeria if one lives in France or Belgium? This article outlines generally accepted principles and the existing Algerian framework to help you ask the right questions to the right person.
Important warning, to be read before anything else. This article is not a fatwa and its author is not a scholar. It sets out widely accepted principles and verifiable information on the Algerian framework. Zakat is an obligation whose validity depends on your personal situation: nature of your assets, debts, income, place of residence, dependents. For your specific case, consult a trusted scholar or imam. No information read online, here or elsewhere, replaces this consultation.
Table of contents, click to go directly to the section
→ Zakat al-Mal and Zakat al-Fitr
→ Paying Zakat to Algeria from abroad
→ Ensuring it reaches the rightful recipients
What Zakat is
Zakat is the third pillar of Islam. It is a mandatory levy on the wealth of those who reach a certain threshold, paid to categories of beneficiaries defined by the Quran. The word itself carries two ideas: purification and growth.
A distinction is useful from the outset. Zakat is not generosity; it is a right. Jurists formulate it by saying that the concerned portion no longer belongs to its holder: it already belongs to its rightful recipients, and the holder merely transmits it to them. This nuance changes how it is approached, including the tone with which it is given.
Zakat al-Mal and Zakat al-Fitr
These are two distinct obligations, often confused. One pertains to wealth, the other to the individual.
| Criterion | Zakat al-Mal | Zakat al-Fitr |
|---|---|---|
| Applies to | Wealth (cash, gold, goods, business assets) | The individual, including children and dependents |
| Condition | Reaching Nisab and holding it for a full lunar year | Having more than the basic needs for the day of Eid |
| Timing | At the end of the lunar year, on each individual's specific date | At the end of Ramadan, before the Eid prayer |
| Measure | One-quarter of a tenth, i.e., 2.5% of the concerned value | One sa', a measure of staple food, or its cash equivalent according to opinions |
| Purpose | Purify wealth and circulate riches | Allow everyone to celebrate Eid with dignity |
In Algeria, the value of Zakat al-Fitr is set annually by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Wakfs, after consultation with the National Fatwa Commission, based on one sa' of the staple food of Algerians. Its collection is entrusted to imams from the middle of Ramadan, for redistribution to the needy one or two days before Eid. The announced amount changes from year to year: consult the current year's communiqué rather than a figure found in an old article.
Categories of beneficiaries
This is the most clearly established point of the entire subject because it is directly stated in the Quran. Only one verse lists the rightful recipients.
إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةً مِنَ اللَّهِ ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
“Alms are only for the poor and the needy, and those employed to collect [zakat], and for bringing hearts together [for Islam], and for freeing captives [or slaves], and for those in debt, and for the cause of Allah, and for the stranded traveler – an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise.”
Surah At-Tawbah, verse 60, translation by Muhammad Hamidullah.
Commentators detail these eight categories as follows:
- The poor and the needy: two degrees of destitution, those who have nothing and those whose resources do not cover their needs. These are, by far, the most concerned beneficiaries in practice.
- Those employed to collect it: agents responsible for collection and distribution.
- Those whose hearts are to be reconciled: a category whose contemporary application is debated among jurists.
- For freeing captives: liberation of captives, with modern applications debated.
- The indebted: those who have incurred a debt they cannot honor, under certain conditions.
- In the path of Allah: a category whose scope is subject to different opinions, some strictly limiting it, others extending it to works of general public interest.
- The stranded traveler: a person cut off from their resources far from home, even if they are well-off at home.
Two points are widely agreed upon and worth remembering. Firstly, Zakat cannot go to anyone other than these categories. Secondly, opinions differ on the exact scope of several of them, particularly the sixth and seventh. This is one reason why personal consultation remains necessary.
The question of Nisab
Nisab is the threshold of wealth from which Zakat becomes due. Below it, it is not due. Two conditions cumulate: reaching this threshold and maintaining it for a full lunar year.
The classic reference is twenty gold dinars, which jurists estimate to be 85 grams of gold. As the price of gold varies daily, the equivalent value in currency constantly changes. This is why it is recalculated and published periodically.
The Algerian mechanism. The Ministry of Religious Affairs and Wakfs announces by communiqué, each new Hijri year, the Nisab expressed in Algerian dinars. The calculation is based on 85 grams of gold, at the price per gram set by the competent national agency. The communiqué also reminds that Zakat corresponds to one-quarter of one-tenth, i.e., 2.5% of the value that reached the threshold at the end of the year.
Never use an amount read in an old article. Look for the communiqué for the current Hijri year.
A word about a well-known divergence: some jurists use gold as a reference, while others use silver, whose equivalent threshold is significantly lower. The choice of reference can therefore make Zakat due in one case and not in the other. This is precisely the kind of question that is settled with a scholar, not with an article.
Paying Zakat to Algeria from abroad
This is the most frequently asked question by the diaspora, and we must answer honestly: opinions differ, and this article will not make a definitive ruling.
Here are the outlines of the debate, presented neutrally.
The argument in favor of local distribution. An ancient and widely followed principle dictates that Zakat should be distributed where the payer resides, for the benefit of the needy in their own region. The logic is that Zakat primarily serves to address poverty where wealth is generated, and that the poor in a locality have a priority right to the assets of that locality.
Cases where transfer is considered more favorably. Several jurists allow transfer to another region, particularly when eligible close relatives are there, when the need is significantly more intense, or when there are no eligible beneficiaries locally. The conditions and degree of allowance vary according to schools of thought and opinions.
What we will not do. We will not tell you whether you can or cannot send your Zakat to Algeria. That would be a fatwa, and we have no authority to issue one. Ask a trusted imam in your country of residence, explaining your real situation: where you live, who your concerned relatives are, what the state of need is here and there. The answer depends on these elements.
Ensuring it reaches the rightful recipients
Once the matter of principle has been decided with your imam, there remains the practical question, which is within our purview. Since Zakat is a right and not a gift, the requirement for its delivery is even stronger than for a voluntary charity.
The institutional circuit. The Algerian state has organized its collection. Zakat funds exist in mosques throughout the territory, under the responsibility of imams, and the National Office of Awqaf and Zakat has postal accounts by wilaya. This is the most institutional and simplest route if you do not designate a specific beneficiary.
The direct circuit. If you wish your Zakat to go to a specific person or family, belonging to one of the eligible categories, you must ensure three things: that the beneficiary truly falls into a category, that the full amount reaches them, and that nothing is deducted along the way. The criteria for recognizing a reliable intermediary are detailed in our guide on how to send a donation to Algeria from abroad.
The question of identifying rightful recipients is particularly delicate, as the most eligible people are often those who never ask for anything. We address this in depth in our article on ways to recognize true needs in Algeria.
A specific precaution for Zakat. Unlike voluntary charity, Zakat cannot be used for just anything. Funding the repair of a mosque, offering a gift, or covering an expense that does not fall into any of the eight categories does not count as Zakat, even if the gesture is otherwise good. If you wish to fund this type of work, the appropriate channel is sadaqa, whose lasting forms are detailed in our article on sadaqa jariya in Algeria.
Consulting a scholar for your case
This is not a cautionary statement added at the end of the article; it is the heart of the matter. Here are the questions that cannot be settled by reading, no matter how serious the content you read.
- What assets are included in the assessment base and which are excluded, notably your dwelling or your work tools.
- How to handle your debts, particularly an ongoing loan.
- Which reference to use for the nisab, gold or silver.
- When your annual due date is.
- Whether you can send your zakat to your country of origin from abroad.
- Whether a determined relative can receive it, knowing that some of your dependents cannot.
An imam at a mosque in your city of residence is the natural point of contact. In Algeria, the wilaya (provincial) religious affairs directorates and the National Fatwa Commission serve as institutional references.
Karim's advice
Many people wait until Ramadan to settle everything at once, whereas the due date for Zakat al-Mal depends on your own lunar year and often falls at a different time. Note down your date once and for all with your imam. This will prevent you from inadvertently delaying it, and you will stop asking yourself the question every year.
Once the amount and beneficiary are determined
We are in Oran. We can verify the situation, directly settle what needs to be, and send you proof. No commission charged.
Make a donation in AlgeriaFrequently Asked Questions
To whom can Zakat be given?
The Quran lists eight categories in verse 60 of Surah At-Tawbah: the poor, the needy, those employed to collect it, those whose hearts are to be reconciled, for freeing captives, the indebted, those in the path of Allah, and the stranded traveler. Jurists agree that Zakat cannot go to others, but they differ on the scope of some of these categories.
What is the difference between Zakat al-Mal and Zakat al-Fitr?
Zakat al-mal applies to wealth and is only due if the nisab is reached and maintained for a full lunar year. Zakat al-fitr applies to the individual, concerns every member of the household including children, and is paid at the end of Ramadan before the Eid prayer. These are two distinct obligations that do not replace each other.
What is nisab and how is it determined?
Nisab is the threshold of wealth from which zakat becomes due, classically valued at the equivalent of 85 grams of gold. Its monetary value changes with the price of gold. In Algeria, the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Endowments publishes the corresponding amount in dinars every Hijri year.
Can one pay their zakat in Algeria when living in France or Belgium?
Jurists' opinions diverge on this point. An ancient orientation favors distribution where the payer resides, while several jurists allow transfer to another region, especially in the presence of eligible close relatives or a clearly more intense need. This question should be posed to a scholar or a trusted imam, who will answer based on your situation.
What is the rate of zakat on money?
The generally accepted measure is one-quarter of one-tenth, or 2.5%, applied to the value that has reached the nisab at the end of the lunar year. The exact calculation of the base, particularly the treatment of debts and personal use assets, requires individual consultation.
Can one give their zakat to a family member?
Some relatives can receive it and others cannot, depending on whether or not they are dependent on you in the sense of religious law. The rules vary, and errors are frequent. This is a question to explicitly ask a scholar, specifying the exact family relationship.
Can zakat be used to build or repair a mosque?
This is a debated question, which depends on the interpretation of the category known as the path of Allah, understood strictly by some and more broadly by others. In case of doubt, financing this type of work with a voluntary sadaqa and paying zakat separately avoids any uncertainty.
How to pay zakat through the official channel in Algeria?
Zakat funds are established in mosques throughout the territory, under the responsibility of imams, and the National Office of Endowments and Zakat has postal accounts in each wilaya. The contact details are recalled in the communiqués of the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Endowments.
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