Zakat al-Fitr

A special charitable contribution required at the end of Ramadan, before Eid al-Fitr prayers. Unlike regular Zakat (which is wealth-based and annual), Zakat al-Fitr is a fixed amount per person in the household — typically the cost of one meal or approximately $10–$15 per person in the U.S. It must be paid before the Eid prayer to count.

The head of household pays for themselves and all dependents. Its purpose is to purify the fasting person from any idle talk or indecent behavior during Ramadan and to ensure the poor can celebrate Eid with dignity.

Zakat al-Fitr is the per-person charity due at the end of Ramadan — a fixed small amount owed by every Muslim with a day's food to spare, payable on behalf of yourself and every dependent (children included), and required to reach the poor before the Eid prayer. Its purposes are stated in the hadith: purification of the fasting person from idle talk and lapses, and feeding the poor so no one goes hungry on Eid (Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah).

The Prophet set the measure at one sa' (roughly 2.5-3 kg) of staple food — dates, barley, wheat — per person. Modern implementation splits along a classical fault line: the Hanafi school permits paying the cash equivalent (more useful to urban poor), while the other schools historically required food; most American mosques and charities operationalize the Hanafi position and announce a dollar figure each Ramadan (commonly $10-$15 per person in recent years, tracking staple prices).

Timing is strict by design: payable during Ramadan's final days and no later than the Eid prayer — afterward it counts only as ordinary sadaqah, having missed its purpose (Abu Dawud). Practical notes for U.S. families: pay for every household member including newborns; if you pay through a national charity, do it early enough for actual pre-Eid distribution; and note it is separate from and additional to annual wealth zakat — a flat per-head obligation with no nisab-based calculation beyond basic sufficiency.