Zakat al-Fitr is separate from the annual Zakat on wealth. It is much smaller, it is owed by almost everyone rather than only by the well off, and its timing is strict.
Who pays it?
Every Muslim who has food beyond their family's needs for the day of Eid. That is a low bar, and deliberately so. The head of a household pays on behalf of everyone they support: spouse, children, and dependants. A child born before the Eid prayer is included.
Unlike Zakat on wealth, there is no nisab and no lunar year to complete. If you have enough to eat on Eid, you pay.
How much is it?
The measure is one sa' of the staple food of the locality, per person. A sa' is a volume measure equal to four mudd, and is commonly reckoned at roughly 2.5 to 3 kilograms depending on the density of the grain.
In Uganda the staple used is typically maize flour, rice, millet or sorghum, whichever the community actually eats. Use a full, generous measure rather than the minimum.
Can I pay in cash instead of food?
This is the most common question and there is a genuine difference of opinion.
- The Hanafi school permits paying the cash value, on the reasoning that the purpose is to meet the recipient's need, and cash may serve better.
- The Shafi'i, Maliki and Hanbali schools hold it should be paid in food, following the practice described in the hadith.
Both positions are held by serious scholars. Many committees in Uganda collect cash and buy food in bulk before distributing, which satisfies both concerns and usually stretches further. If you pay cash, calculate it as the local market price of 2.5 kilograms of the staple on the day, not a figure carried over from last year.
When must it be paid?
It must reach eligible recipients before the Eid prayer. That is the point of it: the poor should be able to eat on Eid like everyone else. Paid after the prayer, it is still charity, but it no longer counts as Zakat al-Fitr.
It may be paid earlier in Ramadan, and most committees collect through the last ten days precisely so that distribution is finished in time. Do not leave it to the final night.
Who receives it?
The same categories as Zakat on wealth, with the emphasis firmly on the poor and needy. It should be distributed locally, to the poor of the community that gave it.
How should a mosque committee organise it?
- Announce the per-person amount at the start of Ramadan so families can budget.
- Collect through the middle of the month, not the last two days.
- Buy in bulk during the third week, when you know your total.
- Package by household size, using the eligibility list you already maintain.
- Distribute at least one day before Eid, and record what went where.
The commonest failure is a committee that collects late, buys late, and is still moving sacks on the morning of Eid. Working a week ahead solves it.
Do I pay for someone who is not my dependant?
You are not obliged to, but you may pay on their behalf with their knowledge. Many people pay for elderly relatives or for a struggling household as a kindness.
If your committee is unsure how to set the local cash figure, ask the imam to fix and announce one, so that the whole community pays a consistent and honest amount.