Zakat al-fitr

Zakat al-Fitr is charity given to the poor at the end of the fasting
in the Islamic holy month of Ramadan . The word Fitr means the same as
Iftar , breaking a fast and it comes from the same root word as Futoor
which means breakfast .
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The amount of Zakat is thesame for everyone regardless of their
different income brackets. The minimum amount is one sa` (four double
handfuls ) of food, grain or dried fruit for each member of the
family. Thiscalculation is based on Ibn 'Umar's report that the
Prophet made Zakat al-Fitr compulsory and payable by a sa` of dried
dates or a sa` of barley.
A companion of Mohammed, Abu Sa`eed al-Khudree said, "In the Prophet's
time, we used togive it (Zakatal-Fitr) as a sa` of food, dried dates ,
barley , raisins or dried cheese". [Bukhari - Arabic/English vol. 2,
p. 340, no. 582] . According to the majority of Sunni scholars One
Sa'a is approximately between 2.6 kg to 3 kg [ citation needed ] .
The distribution of Zakat al-Fitr is the same as that of Zakah , and
is included within its broader sense. Those who may receive Zakat
al-Fitr are the eight categories of recipients mentioned in Surat
Al-Tawbah , [9: 60]. They include:
1. the poor
2. the needy,
3. collectors of Zakah,
4. reconciliation of hearts,
5. freeing captives / slaves(fee al-Riqab),
6. debtors
7. in the Way of Allah / Islamic causes ( fee sabeel illah )
8. the traveler.
Zakat al-Fitr must go to the above-mentioned categories. The Zakat
al-mal cannot be used for any other such things either./