Short answer
Yes, in the Hanafi school, if they are a Muslim who is eligible. Zakat given to a poor Muslim who neglects prayer is valid. It is better to give to people who practise, and you should not give cash to someone you know will spend it on sin. Some Hanbali scholars say not to give zakat to someone who never prays.
Zakat is valid when given to any eligible Muslim, including one who sins openly (fasiq). Preferring the righteous, students of knowledge and needy relatives is better, and giving to someone who will use it for sin is disliked.
Other madhhabs
- Hanbali
- Many Hanbali scholars hold that someone who abandons prayer completely has left Islam, so they say he should not be given zakat unless he returns to prayer.
Explanation
What makes someone eligible for zakat is need, and being a Muslim, not their level of practice. A poor Muslim who misses prayers is still poor, and your zakat to them counts. The Prophet ﷺ told of a man whose charity, given at night, reached a thief, a woman of bad character and a rich man. He was told it had been accepted, and that perhaps the thief would stop stealing and the woman would stop her sin.
Still, it is better to choose well. Scholars recommend giving first to needy relatives, to people of knowledge, to those who are too dignified to ask, and to Muslims who practise, as your zakat helps them worship. A kind gift can also soften a heart and bring someone back to prayer.
If you know a person will spend cash on alcohol, gambling or drugs, do not hand them money. You can pay their rent or bills with their permission, or give food and clothes as zakat; see giving zakat as food or clothes.
This often comes up with family: a brother, sister or cousin who has drifted from prayer. If they are eligible, your zakat to them is valid and keeps family ties; see zakat to family members. Do not make the gift a lecture or a condition.
The evidence
Quran, Surah At-Tawba 9:60
۞ إِنَّمَا ٱلصَّدَقَٰتُ لِلْفُقَرَآءِ وَٱلْمَسَٰكِينِ وَٱلْعَٰمِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَٱلْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِى ٱلرِّقَابِ وَٱلْغَٰرِمِينَ وَفِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ وَٱبْنِ ٱلسَّبِيلِ ۖ فَرِيضَةًۭ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌۭ ﴿٦٠﴾
Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded] traveler - an obligation [imposed] by Allah. And Allah is Knowing and Wise.
The categories are defined by need, not by piety.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1421
Sahih... أما صدقتك على سارق فلعله أن يستعف عن سرقته ...
"As for your charity to a thief, perhaps it will make him refrain from stealing."
Charity that reached a sinner was accepted.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Zakat, chapter on the recipients. Zakat to a poor Muslim who sins is valid; giving to the righteous is better.
- Kashshaf al-Qina', Kitab al-Zakat, chapter on the recipients of zakat. The Hanbali discussion of one who abandons prayer.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.