Ministry of Islamic Affairs has stated over 8,700 people are registered as poor in the Maldives and eligible to receive Zakat Al-Fitr.
The Islamic ministry said 8,764 people are registered as poor in the country, including 1,717 people in Male' City. Noting the list of recipients for Zakat Al-Fitr last year was revised in September 2019, the ministry said the list was revised with new recipients who applied to receive Zakat, while individuals who requested to be removed from the list were omitted from the new list.
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Islamic ministry is accepting Zakat Al-Fitr online. The ministry is accepting Zakat payments through Dhiraagu Pay and Lifestyle application, Ooredoo m-Faisaa, and SMS services of Dhiraagu and Ooredoo. In addition, Zakat is also being accepted via the Maldives Islamic Bank (MIB) FaisaNet, MIB mobile banking, and Bank of Maldives (BML) website.
For residents in Male', the rates of Zakat range from USD 0.97 to USD 6.80. In other areas, the Zakat rate would be the same rate at which rice is sold in the respective area.
Every adult Muslim who possesses food in excess of their needs must pay Zakat Al-Fitr before the Eid Al-Fitr prayer at the end of Ramadan.