There are three honest answers to where to pay zakat in India: directly to eligible people you know, which the fiqh prefers where it is possible; through IndiaZakat.com, the Association of Muslim Professionals' crowdfunding platform launched in April 2020, which takes no commission and passes 100% of each donation less a payment gateway fee it states as about 2%; or through Zakat Foundation of India, a New Delhi trust established in 1997 that runs its own orphanage, hospital, coaching and scholarship programmes and is registered under sections 12A and 80G and the FCRA. IndiaZakat issues 80G receipts for 50% deduction and accepts rupees only from Indian bank accounts; Zakat Foundation's site addresses Indian donors online. The zakat hub covers calculation; this page is about the decision after the number is known.
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The three routes and the fiqh preference
Zakat is owed to specific categories of people, and the classical preference is for the giver to hand it to eligible recipients in their own locality, with the giver's own knowledge of need standing in for verification. That remains the best route for anyone with a reliable view of a family's circumstances: a relative outside the lineage you must support, a domestic worker, a neighbour. It has no fee, no delay and no paperwork, and it also has no receipt, no 80G deduction and no protection against your own misjudgement of eligibility.
The two institutional routes exist for the giver who does not have that knowledge, or whose zakat is larger than their circle of need. They differ in model. IndiaZakat is a marketplace: individuals and NGOs raise causes, AMP's volunteers verify them, and donors choose where their money goes. Zakat Foundation of India is a programme operator: it collects zakat into a trust and spends it on projects it runs. Our IndiaZakat guide and our Zakat Foundation of India guide each review one organisation in depth; here they are set against each other and against direct giving.
What IndiaZakat publishes: fees, verification, disbursement
IndiaZakat's how-it-works page states that the platform charges no commission or fee to applicants or donors, that salaries and administration are borne by the Association of Muslim Professionals, and that 100% of funds received are given to beneficiaries. The exception it states is the payment gateway, which deducts on average about 2% including GST per donation, and elsewhere on the same page a maximum of up to 2.5%; the beneficiary receives the total minus that fee. Bank transfers by NEFT, RTGS or IMPS to AMP's IndiaZakat account at Kotak Bank avoid the gateway, and cash is not accepted at all.
Verification is the platform's main claim. Every cause goes through a cause manager who checks KYC and supporting documents, with ground-level checks by AMP's network, which the who-we-are page puts at 200-plus cities; approval takes a minimum of three to seven days, and a cause that does not respond to the verification team within three days is likely to be rejected. Causes stay live for a default maximum of 45 days. The page sets category limits: livelihood assistance up to ₹50,000 unless management raises it, girls' marriage up to ₹25,000 for basic Shariah requirements, education as per the institution's fee demand, and medical and disaster relief without a fixed cap but against quotations and bills.
Disbursement is to the institution rather than the person wherever possible: education money goes to the school or college account, medical money to the hospital or pharmacy, livelihood money to the vendor supplying the equipment, and only after written justification and AMP verification to the beneficiary directly. Withdrawals are released within three to five days of bank details being submitted, partial withdrawals are allowed, and a cause that misses its goal still receives what it raised. The platform runs a live dashboard updated between 11am and noon daily and has posted extracts of audited accounts from FY2020-21 to FY2023-24, audited by Akbar and Associates and QSA and Associates of Mumbai; AMP itself is a Section 8 non-profit company.
What Zakat Foundation of India publishes: programmes and registrations
Zakat Foundation of India's about page says it was established in 1997 as a grassroots organisation by residents of New Delhi, is registered under the Indian Trusts Act, under sections 12A and 80G of the Income-tax Act, and under the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, and that it collects zakat, sadaqah and other charity for projects it runs, naming an orphanage, a charitable hospital and stipends to widows. The home page's project menu is long: civil services and staff selection coaching with units in Bhopal and Lucknow, scholarships, a junior fellowship, disaster relief, day care, a hungry-person feeding programme, girls' tailoring institutes, a Haj Fund of India, an imam and khateeb institute, a National Waqf Academy, and local units in Bahraich, Bhopal, Kashmir, Ladakh, Lucknow and Telangana.
What the site does not publish on the pages we fetched is a fee schedule, a disbursement ratio, a live tally or recent audited accounts. That is the structural difference: a trust that runs programmes reports outcomes, not per-rupee routing, and a donor is trusting the institution rather than tracking a cause. The donate page directs Indian donors to online payment and to a separate page for non-online methods, and it states the three registrations again. The FCRA registration is the only published signal on NRI or foreign donations; whether it is currently active for receipts is something to confirm with the foundation directly, because FCRA status is not static.
Side by side
| Question | Direct local giving | IndiaZakat.com | Zakat Foundation of India |
|---|---|---|---|
| Fee to donor | None | None; gateway about 2% to 2.5% unless bank transfer | Not published |
| 80G receipt | No | Yes, 50% deduction, on PAN submission | Yes, 80G registered |
| Who chooses the recipient | You | You, from verified causes | The foundation |
| Verification | Your own knowledge | Cause manager, KYC, AMP volunteers | Internal, not published |
| NRI donations | Yes, in person or transfer | Only in rupees from an Indian bank account | FCRA registered; confirm current status |
| Transparency | None needed | Live dashboard, audit extracts FY21 to FY24 | Project reports on site |
| Legal form | Not applicable | Initiative of AMP, a Section 8 company | Trust under the Indian Trusts Act |
Receipts and the income tax position
Zakat is not deductible as zakat. It becomes deductible only when it is paid to an institution approved under section 80G, and then as a donation. Section 80G, as published on incometaxindia.gov.in, allows a deduction equal to 50% of the aggregate of donations to approved institutions in the general case, and sub-section (5D) states that no deduction is allowed for any donation above ₹2,000 unless it is paid by a mode other than cash. For approved charitable institutions the deductible amount is also subject to a qualifying limit of 10% of gross total income as computed under the section.
IndiaZakat states that AMP issues 80G certificates at the 50% norm once the donor submits name, email and PAN. Zakat Foundation states it is 80G registered. Direct giving to an individual yields no receipt and no deduction. Whether the deduction is worth claiming depends on your regime: it is a Chapter VI-A deduction, so it matters only under the old tax regime. Zakat vs income tax in India works through the regime question and the fiqh view on claiming a deduction for an obligatory payment.
How to actually pay through each route
- Calculate the amount first using the nisab and method in the zakat calculation guide, and write down the date so next year's hawl is clear
- For direct giving, confirm the recipient is in an eligible category and is not someone you are obliged to maintain, then hand over cash or transfer and keep a private note
- For IndiaZakat, sign up, pick live causes marked zakat-eligible, pay by gateway or by NEFT to the published AMP account, and submit PAN if you want the 80G receipt
- For Zakat Foundation of India, use the online donation link on the donate page or the non-online methods page, and request the 80G receipt
- Keep every receipt with your tax papers, since 80G claims are matched against the institution's filings
- Split if you want: a direct share to people you know, the balance to one institution, rather than scattering small amounts that cost gateway fees each time
Verdict by giver type
If you are a small giver with zakat under about ₹20,000 and you know people in need, give directly; it is the fiqh preference, costs nothing, and the gateway fee on small online gifts is a real fraction. If you want the receipt or do not have that knowledge, IndiaZakat is the better small-giver platform because you choose the cause, the verification is documented, and a bank transfer avoids the fee. If you are a large giver, in lakhs, who wants your zakat to run an institution rather than fund individual causes, Zakat Foundation of India is the programme route, with the caveat that you are trusting a trust rather than tracking a ledger; ask for the latest audited accounts before a large gift. If you are an NRI, IndiaZakat only takes rupees from an Indian bank account, and the foundation's FCRA status needs confirming with the foundation, so an Indian account is the practical route in both cases.
Use the providers directory and the compare tool for the two organisations' profiles side by side. Facts checked against indiazakat.com, zakatindia.org, incometaxindia.gov.in on 28 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
Is IndiaZakat genuine and safe to use?
IndiaZakat.com is an initiative of the Association of Muslim Professionals, a Section 8 non-profit company, launched in April 2020. Its site publishes a live dashboard, audit report extracts for FY2020-21 to FY2023-24 with named Mumbai auditors, a documented cause verification process and a Byculla, Mumbai address. It charges no commission; only the payment gateway's fee of about 2% is deducted, and bank transfers avoid even that.
Does IndiaZakat charge a fee?
No commission or platform fee to donors or cause raisers; AMP bears salaries and administration and 100% of funds go to beneficiaries. The exception is the payment gateway, which the site says deducts on average about 2% including GST, with a stated maximum of up to 2.5%, before the money reaches the platform. Donating by NEFT, RTGS or IMPS to the published AMP account avoids the gateway deduction.
Can I claim 80G on zakat in India?
Only if the zakat is paid to an 80G-approved institution and claimed as a donation; zakat paid directly to an individual is not deductible. IndiaZakat issues 80G receipts at the 50% norm once you submit PAN, and Zakat Foundation of India states it is 80G registered. Section 80G also bars the deduction for any gift above ₹2,000 paid in cash, and the deduction is available only under the old tax regime.
Can an NRI pay zakat through IndiaZakat?
Only in rupees from a bank account within India. IndiaZakat's page states it accepts donations in INR from Indian nationals only and from Indian bank accounts, and does not accept funds from foreign bank accounts or cards. An NRI with an Indian account can donate normally. Zakat Foundation of India states an FCRA registration, but confirm with the foundation whether foreign receipts are currently open before sending from abroad.
Is it better to give zakat directly or through an organisation?
Direct giving to eligible people you know is the classical preference and has no fee or delay. Organisations earn their place when you lack that knowledge, when your zakat exceeds your circle of need, or when you want a receipt. IndiaZakat keeps you choosing the recipient from verified causes; Zakat Foundation of India spends on programmes it runs. Many givers split between a direct share and one institution.
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Which is the best zakat organisation in India?
There is no single best, because the two main institutions do different things. IndiaZakat is the most transparent for a giver who wants to pick verified individual causes, with zero commission and a live dashboard. Zakat Foundation of India is the institutional option for a giver who wants zakat to fund an orphanage, hospital, coaching and scholarships run by one trust since 1997. Choose by what you want your zakat to do.
