Your foreign helper at home may be eligible for zakat.
Republished from Ustaz Haniff’s Facebook with his kind permission. Edited by Perdaus.
Ask Ustaz Haniff #3: Foreign Domestic Workers as Zakat Recipients
Query:
Can zakat be given to a domestic worker who still owes money to her agent?
Response:
If the domestic worker is a Muslim, then yes, and it is better for you to do so.
This is because foreign domestic workers may be considered to be from the poor and needy. If not, they would not be working overseas.
The second reason is because they are in debt and under the “gharimin” category (asnaf) for zakat.
They are still eligible to receive zakat even after paying off their debts to their agents, however, because they still belong to the first category of being poor and/or needy individuals.
Tanya Ustaz Haniff #3: Pembantu Rumah dari Luar Negara Sebagai Penerima Zakat
Soalan:
Bolehkah memberi zakat kepada pembantu rumah yang masih berhutang dengan agen?
Jawapan:
Jika pembantu rumah itu seorang Muslim, boleh dan afdal.
Ini kerana pembantu rumah dari luar negeri boleh dikatakan dari golongan fakir miskin. Kalau tidak, mereka tidak akan bekerja menjadi pembantu rumah di luar negara.
Sebab kedua ialah kerana mereka berhutang dan tergolong dalam asnaf “gharimin”.
Namun, mereka masih layak menerima zakat walau sudah habis membayar hutang agen, diatas sebab pertama, iaitu dari golongan orang miskin.
