Short answer
Lillah means for the sake of Allah. In UK and South Asian masjids it is the name for voluntary donations that are free of the rules of zakat. Lillah can be spent on any good cause, including building and running a masjid, salaries, bills and madrasa costs, which zakat cannot pay for.
Lillah is voluntary sadaqah (nafl): sunnah and rewarded. Unlike zakat and wajib sadaqah, it does not have to be handed into a poor person's ownership, so a masjid or madrasa may use it for its general needs. Interest money and other unlawful income are not lillah.
The four schools agree on this.
Explanation
Many masjids in Britain, Pakistan, India and Bangladesh have separate boxes or funds marked zakat, sadaqah and lillah. The words overlap in Arabic, but in this usage they mean different funds:
- Zakat: the obligatory 2.5 percent, kept for eligible poor people.
- Sadaqah: often used for money that must also go to the poor, such as fidya, kaffarah and vowed charity, and for voluntary gifts meant for the needy.
- Lillah: general voluntary donations for the masjid's own work: building, repairs, bills, the imam's salary, classes and events.
The difference matters. Zakat and wajib sadaqah must reach eligible people as their own, so a masjid cannot spend them on its bills. If you put zakat in the lillah box, the masjid may spend it on the building, and your zakat will not be paid. Lillah has no such limits, which is why masjids rely on it (see zakat and the masjid).
What does not belong in lillah:
- Zakat and zakat al-fitr.
- Fidya and kaffarah (see what fidya is).
- Interest from a bank account. It is not yours to donate for reward; give it to the poor to be rid of it (see interest on savings).
The reward of lillah depends on sincerity. The Quran describes the righteous as people who feed others saying: we feed you only for the face of Allah, and want no reward or thanks from you (76:9). That is the meaning of the word itself. The four schools agree that voluntary charity may go to any good cause. See also what sadaqah is.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Insaan 76:9
إِنَّمَا نُطْعِمُكُمْ لِوَجْهِ ٱللَّهِ لَا نُرِيدُ مِنكُمْ جَزَآءًۭ وَلَا شُكُورًا ﴿٩﴾
[Saying], "We feed you only for the countenance of Allah. We wish not from you reward or gratitude.
Giving purely for Allah is the meaning of lillah.
Quran, Surah Al-Baqara 2:261
مَّثَلُ ٱلَّذِينَ يُنفِقُونَ أَمْوَٰلَهُمْ فِى سَبِيلِ ٱللَّهِ كَمَثَلِ حَبَّةٍ أَنۢبَتَتْ سَبْعَ سَنَابِلَ فِى كُلِّ سُنۢبُلَةٍۢ مِّا۟ئَةُ حَبَّةٍۢ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ يُضَٰعِفُ لِمَن يَشَآءُ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ وَٰسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿٢٦١﴾
The example of those who spend their wealth in the way of Allah is like a seed [of grain] which grows seven spikes; in each spike is a hundred grains. And Allah multiplies [His reward] for whom He wills. And Allah is all-Encompassing and Knowing.
Voluntary spending for Allah is multiplied.
Sahih al-Bukhari 1
Sahih... إنما الأعمال بالنيات وإنما لكل امرئ ما نوى ...
"Actions are only by intentions, and each person gets what he intended."
Which fund your money belongs to, and its reward, follow your intention.
Where the ruling is recorded
- Radd al-Muhtar, Kitab al-Zakat, chapter on the recipients (bab al-masrif). Zakat and wajib sadaqat need tamlik to the poor; voluntary sadaqah does not.
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Zakat, chapter on those to whom zakat may be given. Zakat may not be spent on building a masjid.
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.