Fitrana (Sadaqat al-Fitr): Who Pays, How Much, When

Fitrana, also called sadaqat al-fitr, zakat al-fitr, sadqa fitr or simply fitra, is the small charity every Muslim household gives at the end of Ramadan. It is simple to pay, but families often have the same questions every year: who has to pay it, for whom, how much in rupees, whether money is acceptable, and the last time it can be given. This guide answers each one, with the differences between the madhabs. To work out the total for your house, use our fitrana calculator, which also works as a zakat al fitr calculator or fitr calculator: enter the number of people and choose the item.

What is sadaqat al-fitr?

Ibn Umar reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made zakat al-fitr obligatory, a sa’ of dates or a sa’ of barley, on every Muslim, slave and free, male and female, young and old, and ordered that it be given before people go out to the Eid prayer (Bukhari 1503). Ibn Abbas reported that he called it a purification for the fasting person from idle talk and obscenity, and food for the poor (Abu Dawud 1609).

So fitrana has two purposes: it makes up for the small faults in our fasting, and it makes sure that the poor have something on the day of Eid. It is linked to the person, not to wealth held for a year, which is what makes it different from zakat.

Who must pay fitrana?

• Hanafi: fitrana is wajib on every Muslim who, at dawn on Eid day, owns wealth equal to the nisab over and above basic needs and debts. This wealth does not need to have been held for a year, and it does not need to be zakatable wealth (al-Hidayah, Sadaqat al-Fitr). So a person who owes no zakat, because their savings have not completed a year, may still owe fitrana if they own the nisab on Eid morning in household goods beyond their needs.
• Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali: the bar is lower. Anyone who has more than the food the family needs for the day and night of Eid pays it.
• Shia (Ja’fari): fitra is obligatory too, on an adult who is not poor at the time of sunset on the night of Eid; follow the amount your marja’s office announces.

The nisab used in the Hanafi rule is today’s silver nisab, about Rs 2,95,626. See nisab today.

For whom do you pay?

• Yourself and your young children: the head of the house pays for them. If a child has wealth of their own, it can be paid from that.
• Wife: in the Hanafi view a wife who owns the nisab pays her own fitrana, but it is valid and common for the husband to pay for her with her permission. The Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali schools make the husband responsible for his wife’s fitrana, as part of his duty to support her.
• Adult children: in the Hanafi view they pay for themselves if they own the nisab; the father may pay for them with their permission.
• Others: you may pay for anyone else, such as a parent or a household worker, with their permission.
• A baby born on Eid: a baby born before dawn on Eid day is counted; a baby born after dawn is not. A person who dies before dawn on Eid is not counted.

Hanbali scholars also consider it recommended to pay for a baby still in the womb, following a practice reported from Uthman; it is not obligatory.

How much is fitrana?

The amount is measured in food. The sa’ is a measure of volume, so its weight depends on the food, which is why scholars give approximate kilograms.

Item	Hanafi amount per person	CII minimum, Ramadan 1447 (2026)
Wheat or flour	Half a sa’, about 1.75 to 2 kg	Rs 300
Barley	One sa’, about 4 kg	Rs 1,100
Dates	One sa’, about 4 kg	Rs 1,600
Raisins	One sa’, about 4 kg	Rs 3,800

The Council of Islamic Ideology announced the 2026 amounts on 9 February 2026, with Rs 200 for those using subsidised flour. For 2025 the amounts were Rs 220 by wheat, Rs 450 by barley, Rs 1,650 by dates and Rs 2,500 by raisins. The figures for Ramadan 2027 will be added to the fitrana calculator on the day they are announced; until then, use the price of the item where you live. Past years and their sources are on the calculator page.

In the Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali schools, and in the view of many Ahl-e-Hadith scholars, the amount is one full sa’ of the local staple food for every item, wheat included, following Abu Sa’id al-Khudri, who said he would keep giving a full sa’ (Muslim 985). This is usually given as about 2 to 3 kg depending on the food. In Pakistan that means a fuller measure of wheat or rice than the Hanafi half sa’.

Which item should you choose?

You may pay by any of the four items. Those who can afford it are encouraged to pay by the more expensive items, dates or raisins, because this gives more to the poor. A family that pays by wheat because money is tight has still paid its fitrana in full.

Can fitrana be paid in money?

• Hanafi: yes. Paying the value in money is allowed, and it is what most people in Pakistan and India do, because the poor can spend it on what they actually need for Eid.
• Shafi’i, Maliki and Hanbali: the relied-upon view in each school is that fitrana is given as food, as in the hadith. Some contemporary scholars and official bodies in these regions accept money where giving food is impractical or less useful to the poor, often by following the Hanafi view on this point; ask your own scholar which practice to follow.
• Shia (Sistani): the value of the food may be given in money; follow your marja’s amount.

Worked example: a family of six

Imran and his wife live in Multan with three children and Imran’s mother, who has no savings of her own. Imran owns more than the nisab and offers to pay for everyone. At the 2026 amounts:

• By wheat: 6 × Rs 300 = Rs 1,800.
• By dates: 6 × Rs 1,600 = Rs 9,600.
• By raisins: 6 × Rs 3,800 = Rs 22,800.

His wife and mother should know he is paying for them, since in the Hanafi view each adult’s fitrana is their own duty. A sadqa fitr calculator like ours does this multiplication for you; use this year’s amount when it is announced.

When must fitrana be paid?

• The best time is on Eid morning before the Eid prayer, as the hadith commands.
• Early payment: the Hanafi school allows paying it before Eid, and in practice during Ramadan, so that it reaches the poor in time. The Shafi’i school allows it from the start of Ramadan. The Maliki and Hanbali schools allow it a day or two before Eid, as Ibn Umar used to do (Bukhari 1511).
• After the Eid prayer: it should not be delayed past the prayer. Abu Dawud 1609 says that given after the prayer it counts as ordinary sadaqah. If it was missed, it is still owed and should be paid as soon as possible.

In Pakistan many mosques and charities collect fitrana from the middle of Ramadan so that it can be distributed before Eid. Giving it through them is fine, as long as they hand it over in time.

Who receives fitrana?

Fitrana goes to the same people as zakat, mainly the poor and the needy (Surah at-Tawbah 9:60). It cannot be given to your own parents, grandparents, children or grandchildren, and a husband and wife cannot give it to each other. Sayyids cannot receive it in the four Sunni schools. Giving it to poor relatives such as brothers, sisters, uncles and aunts is allowed and carries a double reward. Several people’s fitrana may go to one family, and one person’s fitrana may be split. Read who can receive zakat for the full list.

Fitrana, zakat and fidya are different

• Fitrana: a fixed amount per person, once a year at Eid, on wealth that does not need a year to pass.
• Zakat: 2.5% of your zakatable wealth, due on your own zakat date. Use the zakat calculator.
• Fidya: paid for each fast a person can never make up; in the Hanafi madhab one fidya equals one fitrana. Use the fidya and kaffara calculator and read roza fidya.

Paying one does not replace the others. In Urdu, use the فطرانہ کیلکولیٹر. This guide is not a fatwa; if your situation is unusual, ask a qualified scholar.

Frequently asked questions