What is Fidyah?
If you don’t fast for any of the days of Ramadan, you’ll be required to pay a charitable form of compensation. You must pay fidya (fidyah) for fasts missed out of necessity, that cannot be made up afterwards.
In Ramadan if a person is unable to fast because he is elderly or sick with no hope of recovery, then he is not obliged to fast. Instead he should feed one poor person for each day (Fidyah).
Your Fidyah donation can make a huge difference to those who do not have enough to eat. You can give a fasting person a nutritious Suhoor and Iftar meal, from just £3 a day or £90 for the entire month.
Why is Fidya important in Islam?
Fasting is for a fixed number of days, and if one of you be sick, or if one of you be on a journey, you will fast the same number of other days later on. For those who are capable of fasting (but still do not fast) there is a redemption: feeding a needy man for each day missed. Whoever voluntarily does more good than is required, will find it better for him; and that you should fast is better for you, if you only know. (Qur’an 2:184)
How much is Fidya for Ramadan 2021?
£3 fidya for each missed fast. This should provide one person with two meals or two people with one meal. However, if someone misses all the fasts of Ramadan, they would need to pay £90. The price of Fidyah fluctuates year on year in line with the price of basic staple foods. This will provide an individual living in poverty with two nutritious meals which could not only bring hope and happiness but save lives too.
Who is Eligible to Pay Fidya 2021?
You are eligible to donate fidyah if you have missed or are exempt from fasting due to pregnancy, illness, old age or any other reason which prevents you from making the fasts up later. If you fall into any of these categories, then you must strive to donate Fidyah before you missed fast.
“(The prescribed fast is for) a certain number of days. Whoever among you does not fast on those days because you are sick or on a journey, then (you should fast) the same number of days on other days. Those who are able to fast are also required to pay a fee (which is equivalent to the cost) of feeding a desperate person. ”
(Al-Baqarah 2:184)
What If I Miss My Fast Without a Valid Reason?
If you miss a fast without an appropriate reason then you are not eligible for paying Fidyah. Instead, you should pay Kaffarah, which is the act of either fasting for 60 continuous days or feeding 60 poor individuals for each missed day's fast.
Kaffarah means “what is paid to redress an imbalance or to compensate for commissioning a sinful act, i.e. a kind of punishment or penalty”.
Deliberate breaking of fasts during Ramadan
This is expiation due for deliberate breaking of the obligatory fasts in the month of Ramadan due to sexual relations with one’s spouse whilst fasting, in this case the expiation is severe: to free a slave. If that is not possible, then one must fast for two consecutive months; if he is not able to do that, then he must feed sixty poor people.
“It makes no difference whether ejaculation occurred or not, so long as intercourse took place. If ejaculation occurred without intercourse no expiation is required, but one still incurs sin and must refrain from eating and drinking for the rest of the day, and must make up that fast.”
Crisis Aid can pay your Kafarrah on your behalf at the cost of £3 per person. For example to feed 60 people that will be £180.
Your Fidya Donation Can Make a Difference
Millions of people at risk of starvation, you can help ease their hunger by paying your Fidyah where it is needed the most. Fulfilling your obligation can provide two nutritious meals, which can make all the difference to someone in need, providing energy, strength and improving their health.
Fidyah is paid by those who are unable to fast owing to illness, old age or infirmity. Fidyah consists of paying £3 for a person per day.
