Praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.
It is permissible to give part of one` Zakah to the person who can`t afford marriage expenses. According to our scholars (Shafie): "The poor is one who has neither money nor a source of income to provide for essential needs: food, drink, residence and other." They also stated that "other essential needs" include marriage for the one who fears hardship and falling into adultery. This is, of course, in case he didn`t get married. Rather, it is stated in a Shafie book what follows: "If what he earns suffices for food and clothing, but he needs to get married, then he is permitted to take from the Zakah to meet the latter need [Moghni Al-Mohtaaj, Vol.4:P.175]
The late Grand Mufti Dr. Nooh al-Qhodaah issued Fatwa No.(503) in which he permitted giving Zakah to persons who want to get married. However, giving Zakah to someone who earns a fat salary could encourage him to spend extravagantly while, in principle, Zakah should be given to the poor who is careful in spending. And Allah The Almighty Knows Best.