It is obligatory for a Muslim who has the means. Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them both, reported:

The report describes the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, making Zakat al-Fitr obligatory as one sa' of dates or barley. It includes young and old, male and female Muslims, and directs that it be given before people leave for the prayer. Al-Bukhari, 1503; the Arabic quotation is an excerpt.

Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, also described its purpose:

It purifies the fasting person from idle and indecent speech and provides food for the needy. Abu Dawud, 1609, excerpt; graded hasan by al-Albani. This is worship of Allah as well as help for others. It does not remove the duty to repent from sins or restore people's rights.

Zakat al-Fitr requires ability, but it does not require the wealth threshold known as nisab or the passing of a zakah year. Ibn Baz explained that a Muslim pays for himself and for his wife and children whose maintenance he owes, when he has enough beyond their necessary food for Eid day and night to give Zakat al-Fitr. Someone with nothing beyond those needs is not required to give what he cannot afford.

Completing Ramadan's fast is not a condition. A person with the means pays for a young child whose maintenance they owe. A Muslim who did not fast for a valid excuse also owes it if they have the means. Someone may be poor enough to receive Zakat al-Fitr yet also owe it if the required surplus is available.

A son or daughter who supports themselves is responsible for their own payment. A parent does not automatically owe it for every adult relative living under the same roof. If someone wishes to pay voluntarily for an independent adult, they should obtain that person's agreement and arrange the intention and agency clearly. Neither should simply assume the other has paid.

The amount is one Prophetic sa' of staple food per person; Ibn Baz applied this amount to all the staple foods. A sa' consists of four mudds. It is a measure of volume, not a fixed kilogram weight. A sa' of rice can weigh differently from a sa' of dates, and different varieties of the same food can also vary.

Ibn Baz gave approximately three kilograms as a cautious estimate. If you use scales, choose a reliable conversion for the particular food you are giving; a difference between published estimates does not, by itself, establish a shortfall. You can instead use a properly calibrated sa'. A bag of unknown quantity is not enough.

If you are paying for five people, you need five complete sa's, not one for the entire household. They may be combined in larger bags as long as the total is measured correctly; separate packaging for each person is not required.

Give sound, usable staple food, such as rice, wheat or dates where these form part of the local staple diet. Spoiled or inedible food is not suitable. Higher food prices do not reduce the prescribed quantity, and a higher income does not increase the number of sa's owed per person.

The majority of scholars require food. This is also Ibn Baz's ruling, based on the Sunnah specifying a sa' of food. Following that ruling means delivering the required staple food to an eligible recipient, rather than giving its price instead.

Hanafi scholars and a number of other scholars permit payment of its value, so prohibiting cash is not a unanimous position. The ruling followed here is to give food in accordance with the reported Sunnah. The disagreement is not a reason to disparage scholars or people who have sought guidance from a trustworthy scholar.

Giving cash directly to the recipient instead of food is different from giving money to an agent who purchases and delivers the food for you. The latter is agency for paying in food, not a cash substitute delivered to the recipient.

The best time is on Eid morning before the prayer. Giving it one or two days earlier is permitted. The account concerning Ibn Umar states:

They used to give it a day or two before Eid al-Fitr. Al-Bukhari, 1511. This describes their practice; it is not a separate command spoken by the Prophet.

Do not leave the arrangements until the last few minutes before prayer if you have not identified a recipient or an agent. Make those arrangements early while observing the proper distribution time. See Eid Prayer: How to Pray It and Key Rulings for the prayer itself.

Ibn Abbas's report distinguishes giving it before the prayer from giving it afterwards. Ibn Baz ruled that it must be paid before the Eid prayer. Someone who delays without an excuse must repent and pay promptly; the obligation does not disappear when its time passes. Someone who forgot or had a valid excuse pays when the excuse ends and is not treated like a person who deliberately delayed.

You may appoint a trustworthy person or organisation to buy and distribute the food for you. Ibn Baz permitted giving the purchase money to an agent ahead of time so that the agent buys and distributes when the proper time arrives. Advance preparation is different from prematurely delivering Zakat al-Fitr to a poor recipient.

Before transferring money, check three things:

1. Does the organisation distribute staple food, or does it give cash to recipients?
2. Does the amount cover a full sa' per person, with any service fees made clear and without reducing the required food quantity?
3. Will the food reach the eligible recipient, or that recipient's authorised agent, within the prescribed time and before the Eid prayer?

If the charity is your purchasing and distribution agent, a receipt for the money alone is not enough when it fails to deliver the food to an eligible recipient or their agent on time.

If a specific eligible recipient has genuinely authorised it to receive on their behalf, and it takes possession of the food for them within the prescribed time before prayer, the food has reached their agent even if they collect it personally later. Do not assume every charity has that authority. Receiving money alone does not replace purchasing and properly taking possession of the food.

Intention belongs in the heart: intend Zakat al-Fitr for yourself and the people for whom you are paying, and tell your agent the purpose and number of people. No spoken formula is required. An earlier general donation cannot simply be relabelled afterwards as Zakat al-Fitr when that was not the intention at payment.

It is given to poor and needy Muslims. This is the position chosen by Ibn Baz, based on Ibn Abbas's description of food for the needy. Jurists differ over extending its recipients to the categories for wealth zakah, so do not assume every eligible use of wealth zakah is also an eligible use of Zakat al-Fitr.

Look for genuine need. A recipient may avoid asking, or may earn an income that does not cover the household's needs. Do not give it as a social gift to someone well-off, or merely because someone is an imam or a friend. Mosque construction and Eid celebrations are not delivery of this food to its eligible recipients.

Give attention to poor people where you live. Ibn Baz stated that local distribution is preferable and permitted sending it elsewhere when there is a need. When appointing an agent abroad, check eligibility, quantity and timely delivery. If the countries observe Eid on different days, ask qualified scholars about your circumstances rather than allowing the transfer to delay the obligation.