Zakat for Those in Debt: Al-Gharimin
The sixth category of zakat — al-gharimin — supports those overwhelmed by debt they cannot repay. This guide examines which debts qualify, the scholarly conditions that apply, and how this ancient category addresses modern realities from medical debt to business failure.
In this article
Key Facts about Al-Gharimin
- Al-gharimin (الغارمين) is the sixth of eight zakat categories in Quran 9:60. The singular form is gharim (غارم), from the Arabic root gh-r-m (غ-ر-م) meaning to be liable, obligated, or burdened by debt.
- Classical scholars identified two distinct types of qualifying debt: (1) debt incurred for personal needs when destitute, and (2) debt incurred to reconcile between people or prevent communal harm.
- For personal debt, the core condition is that the person cannot repay from their existing assets — they are genuinely insolvent relative to the debt owed.
- Global household debt reached approximately $64 trillion in 2025, underscoring the immense contemporary relevance of this zakat category.
- Medical debt is widely considered one of the clearest modern applications — debt arising from unavoidable healthcare expenses that the person cannot repay.
- Critically: giving zakat to pay off a debt that is owed directly to the zakat payer is invalid — Jordan's Dar al-Iftaa explicitly rules this impermissible across all four madhabs.
- Named scholars permitting debt waiver as zakat include one Shafi'i opinion, Ashhab (Maliki school), Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq, al-Hassan al-Basri, and Ata — with Egyptian Dar al-Ifta issuing a conditional permit.
- Student loan debt, business failure, and natural disaster recovery debt are all discussed by contemporary scholars with varying levels of qualification.
Definition & Etymology
Core Definition
Al-ghārimūn (الغارمون) or al-ghārimīn (الغارمين) derives from the root gh-r-m (غ-ر-م), meaning to be liable, obligated, or to incur a financial burden. A ghārim is literally “one who is burdened” — a person crushed by debt they cannot discharge from their own resources.
This category addresses a timeless human reality: financial ruin through circumstances beyond one's control. The Quran places those in debt as the sixth of eight categories deserving zakat, reflecting the Shariah's recognition that debt can be as debilitating as poverty — and that relieving it is an act of profound social and spiritual importance.
“If someone is in difficulty, then [let there be] a postponement until [a time of] ease. But if you give [it] as charity, then it is better for you, if you only knew.”
— Surah al-Baqarah 2:280
Classical scholars distinguished the gharim from the poor person (faqir): a poor person lacks assets; a gharim may possess assets but has debts exceeding them, rendering them effectively insolvent. Someone with a house but a mortgage they cannot service may qualify as a gharim even though they technically own property.
The Two Types of Qualifying Debt
The majority of classical scholars — across all four madhabs — identified two distinct types of gharim, each with different eligibility rules. This distinction is critical because the second type can qualify even wealthy individuals.
Type 1: Personal Need Debt
Debt incurred to meet personal or family needs when a person lacked sufficient resources. The person must be unable to repay from existing assets. This is the more common application and covers:
- • Medical expenses
- • Basic living expenses
- • Housing when genuinely necessary
- • Business failure (if the business was lawful)
- • Natural disaster recovery
Type 2: Community Reconciliation Debt
Debt incurred by a person to reconcile between disputing parties, prevent communal violence, or serve the community's interest. Unlike Type 1, this person may be wealthy — the wealth test does not apply. This covers:
- • Paying blood money to prevent tribal feuds
- • Covering costs to resolve community disputes
- • Emergency relief provided on personal credit
- • Mediation costs in serious conflicts
Scholarly Conditions for Eligibility
Conditions Required Across the Four Madhabs
- 1
Debt Must Be Current and Legally Binding
The debt must exist now — not a projected future debt. It must be a real obligation owed to an identifiable creditor. Contingent liabilities, informal arrangements, or moral obligations without legal force are generally not sufficient.
- 2
Debt Must Arise from a Lawful Purpose
The original cause of the debt must be permissible under Shariah. Debts from gambling, alcohol trade, haram businesses, or prohibited activities do not qualify. However, if a person incurred a haram debt, later repented, and is now genuinely struggling, some scholars show flexibility.
- 3
Person Cannot Repay from Own Assets (Type 1)
After accounting for all assets — property, savings, investments — the person must have insufficient means to discharge the debt. A person who owns a luxury car but has medical debt could be expected to sell the car first.
- 4
Debt Must Be Owed to a Third Party
For Type 1 debt, the debt cannot be owed to the zakat payer themselves. Directing zakat to someone to repay your own loan to them is prohibited across all madhabs — it converts sadaqah into a debt collection mechanism.
- 5
Debt Should Not Result from Gross Extravagance
Hanafi and Maliki scholars add that debt incurred through grossly extravagant, irresponsible spending — well beyond genuine need — may not qualify. The purpose of this condition is to prevent abuse, not to punish poor financial decisions.
The Debt Waiver Debate — Named Scholar Positions
A distinct and practically important question within the gharimin category is whether zakat can be given in the form of a debt waiver — that is, whether a creditor can write off a debt owed to them and count this as the discharge of their own zakat obligation. This is separate from the question of giving zakat money to pay someone else's debt; it concerns whether the act of forgiveness itself constitutes zakat. The Quran provides spiritual encouragement for this approach: “If someone is in difficulty, then let there be a postponement until a time of ease. But if you waive [the debt] as charity, it is better for you, if you only knew.” (Surah al-Baqarah 2:280).
Classical scholars debated this question with genuine disagreement. Those who permitted the debt waiver as zakat include:
Scholars Permitting Debt Waiver as Zakat
One Shafi'i Opinion
A minority position within the Shafi'i school holds that forgiving a debt can constitute zakat, on the basis that the economic effect is equivalent to giving the debtor money and having them repay it.
Ashhab (Maliki School)
Ashhab, a leading Maliki jurist, permitted debt forgiveness as zakat under specific conditions, arguing the debtor receives tangible relief equivalent to receiving funds.
Imam Ja'far al-Sadiq
The sixth Imam of the Ahl al-Bayt tradition permitted this form of zakat, holding that the effective transfer of financial benefit meets the purpose of the category.
al-Hassan al-Basri and Ata
Both of these prominent Tabi'un scholars — al-Hassan al-Basri and Ata ibn Abi Rabah — are recorded as permitting the creditor to count a debt waiver toward their zakat obligation.
However, the majority position — including the four founding Imams — holds that debt forgiveness does not discharge zakat. Their reasoning rests on the tamlik (ownership transfer) principle: zakat requires transferring actual wealth into the possession of a recipient. When a creditor simply writes off a debt, no new wealth changes hands; the debtor merely loses an obligation. The creditor is not “giving” anything in a material sense.
Egyptian Dar al-Ifta: Conditional Permission
Egypt's Dar al-Ifta — one of the most authoritative fatwa bodies in the Sunni world — permits debt waiver as zakat under strict conditions: the debt must be for a lawful purpose, the debtor must genuinely be unable to repay, and the creditor must genuinely intend the waiver as a charitable act rather than a bad-debt write-off. When all conditions are met, the waiver can be counted toward the creditor's zakat obligation.
Jordan Dar al-Iftaa: Clear Prohibition
Jordan's Dar al-Iftaa is explicit and unambiguous: giving zakat to someone to settle a debt they owe directly to the zakat payer is not permissible. This constitutes a circular transaction in which the payer effectively benefits from their own zakat payment. The ruling is consistent across all four Sunni madhabs and applies regardless of how the transaction is structured.
The practical guidance most scholars give: if you wish to help someone who owes you money, forgive the debt assadaqah (voluntary charity) — this is a noble act fully endorsed by Quran 2:280 — but direct your obligatory zakat toward the debts of third parties. This maintains the redistributive integrity of zakat while still encouraging debt relief through the broader Islamic system of voluntary giving.
Modern Application
With global household debt at approximately $64 trillion in 2025, the gharimin category has enormous contemporary relevance. The scale of the global debt crisis maps directly onto the classical Islamic concern: countless individuals are trapped by obligations they incurred not out of extravagance but out of necessity — medical emergencies, job loss, natural disasters, and the structural costs of building a life in expensive modern economies. Contemporary scholars and fatwa bodies have addressed most major modern debt types.
Medical Debt
Clearly qualifies. Healthcare expenses are typically unavoidable and necessary. This is the most broadly accepted modern application across all contemporary scholarly opinions. Applies in countries both with and without universal healthcare coverage.
Business Failure
Qualifies if lawful. A business that failed, leaving the owner personally liable for debts they cannot repay, is a direct application — provided the business was in a halal industry and the person has genuinely exhausted their resources.
Natural Disaster Recovery
Clearly qualifies. Debt incurred to rebuild after a flood, earthquake, fire, or other disaster — when the person has no means of self-recovery — is a direct application. This is widely used by Islamic charities operating in disaster zones.
Student Loans
Conditionally qualifies. Accepted by AMJA and many Western scholars when the person is genuinely struggling and the field of study was lawful. More restrictive scholars argue that education creates future earning capacity, making the person a present borrower rather than a true gharim.
“The Prophet (PBUH) said: ‘It is not permissible for a rich man to give in sadaqah except for five: a fighter in Allah's cause, a collector of zakat, a debtor (gharim), a person who buys the sadaqah, or a neighbor who is poor and is given a gift from the sadaqah and gives some to a rich person.’”
— Sunan Abi Dawud, narrated by Abu Sa'id al-Khudri (RA)
What Does Not Qualify
Understanding exclusions is as important as understanding inclusions. The following situations are widely held to not qualify for gharimin zakat:
Disqualifying Circumstances
Gambling Debts
Debt arising from gambling is invalid under all madhabs. The debt itself arises from a prohibited activity, and zakat cannot legitimize haram transactions.
Haram Business Losses
Debt from alcohol sales, conventional banking transactions where the person was the lender at interest, or other prohibited commercial activities does not qualify.
Debt the Person Can Afford to Repay
If the person has sufficient net assets — after accounting for essential living needs — to repay the debt, they do not qualify as a gharim even if they choose not to repay.
Debt Owed to the Zakat Payer
This is the critical rule: you cannot give zakat to someone to have them repay your own loan to them. This constitutes circular self-benefit and nullifies the zakat.
Extravagant Luxury Spending
Hanafi and Maliki scholars restrict the category from covering debt incurred through gross waste — buying luxury goods on credit far beyond genuine need. The category was designed for genuine hardship, not lifestyle debt.
For a complete overview of all eight zakat recipient categories, see our Eight Zakat Categories Explained guide. Use our Zakat Calculator to calculate your annual obligation.
Frequently Asked Questions
Rashid Al-Mansoori
Verified ExpertIslamic Finance Specialist & Shariah Advisor
Dubai-based Islamic finance specialist with 15+ years in Shariah-compliant banking, investment structuring, and financial advisory across the GCC. Certified by AAOIFI and CISI. Founded Islamic Finance Calculator to make Islamic finance education accessible to everyone.
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