All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah.
Zakāh is one of the pillars of Islam and is a purely financial act of worship. Tawkil (agency) in it is therefore permissible, because its objective is the delivery of the wealth, and this is achieved whether the person does it himself or appoints someone else to do it. Imam Sulaymān al-Bujayrimī al-Shāfiʿī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “In sum, acts of worship fall into three categories. Either they are purely bodily, in which case agency is not allowed, except for the two rakʿahs of ṭawāf, which are permitted as an adjunct to the rite; if one were to appoint an agent for them on their own, it would not be valid. Or they are purely financial, in which case agency is permitted without restriction. Or they combine the two, such as Ḥajj, on condition that it is performed on behalf of a deceased person or one who is incapacitated.” [Tuḥfat al-Ḥabīb ʿalā Sharḥ al-Khaṭīb, Vol.3/p.459]
Shaykh al-Islām Imam al-Nawawī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “He may appoint an agent to disburse the zakāh that he is entitled to distribute himself. If he wishes, he may appoint him to hand it over to the imam or the collector, or, if he wishes, to distribute it among the categories of eligible recipients. Both are permissible without disagreement amongst the scholars.” [al-Majmūʿ, Vol.6/p.165]
Zakāh is due on the category of wealth itself, and it may be paid either from the principal’s wealth or from the agent’s wealth. Al-Nawawī said: “Agency was permitted in this even though it is an act of worship because it resembles the settlement of debts, and because need may call for agency, such as when the wealth is far away, and the like. Our colleagues said: It makes no difference whether he appoints him to pay it from the principal’s wealth or from the agent’s wealth; both are permissible without disagreement.” [al-Majmūʿ, Vol.6/p.165]
If the agent pays it from his own wealth, then for it to be valid his own intention at the time of payment is required, and the principal’s intention is not sufficient. Imam Ibn Ḥajar al-Haytamī (may Allah have mercy on him) said: “The agent’s intention is specifically required when the obligation is discharged from his wealth, as where his principal says to him, ‘Pay my zakāh from your own wealth,’ so that his act is directed away from himself, as in performing Ḥajj on someone’s behalf. The principal’s intention is therefore not sufficient.” [Tuḥfat al-Muḥtāj, Vol.3/p.348]
Accordingly, it is permissible for the one who owes zakāh to appoint another to pay it on his behalf. It is permissible for the agent to pay it from his own wealth and then claim reimbursement from the one who owes the zakāh, and in this case the agent’s intention at the time of payment is a condition. And Allah Almighty knows best.
