Fidya and Kaffarah are the two payments Islam prescribes when a Ramadan fast is missed or broken, and they are not interchangeable. Fidya is compensation for someone who genuinely cannot fast and will never be able to make the days up, such as the elderly or the terminally ill. Kaffarah is expiation for someone who broke a fast deliberately, without a valid excuse. One is mercy. The other is repair. Confusing them is the single most common mistake Muslims make every Ramadan, and it usually means either overpaying out of guilt or underpaying an obligation that is still owed.
If you are reading this while carrying worry about a fast you missed, take the pressure off your chest first. Allah did not build fasting to break people. He built exemptions into the verse itself. Your task now is simply to identify which category you fall into, calculate the amount honestly, and get that food into the hands of someone who is hungry tonight.
Overview of Fidya and Kaffarah
| Fidya | Kaffarah | |
|---|---|---|
| Reason | Unable to fast, permanently | Fast broken deliberately, no valid excuse |
| Who it applies to | Chronically ill, terminally ill, frail elderly | A person who chose to break the fast |
| What is owed | Feed one person in need per missed fast | Fast 60 consecutive days, or feed 60 people |
| Do you still make up the fast? | No, because you cannot | Yes, the qada fast is still owed |
| US amount guide | About $15 per missed fast | About $900 per fast broken (60 x $15) |
| When to pay | As soon as the inability is clear | As soon as possible after the fast is broken |
What Is Fidya and Who Must Pay It?
Fidya comes straight from the Quran. Allah says that those who find fasting a severe hardship owe a ransom of feeding a person in need (Quran 2:184). It is a permission, not a punishment.
Fidya applies when the inability to fast is permanent or expected to last indefinitely:
- The elderly who are too weak to fast safely
- People with chronic conditions where fasting causes medical harm, confirmed by a doctor
- The terminally ill with no realistic prospect of recovery
- In some scholarly opinions, a woman whose pregnancy or breastfeeding continues year after year and who cannot realistically catch up
Fidya does not apply to temporary situations. If you missed fasts because of travel, a short illness, surgery recovery, menstruation, or a pregnancy you will recover from, you owe qada, meaning you make up those days later. Paying money instead does not discharge that obligation.
Fidya Amount for 2027
The classical measure is feeding one poor person for each day missed, calculated by scholars as roughly one mudd or half a sa’ of staple food, around 750 grams of wheat, rice or dates depending on the madhhab.
For the United States, the Fiqh Council of North America publishes an annual recommended rate based on the average daily cost of food. Their recommended Fidya rate for 2026 was $15 per missed fast. The Fiqh Council updates this figure every year before Ramadan, so confirm the current 2027 rate with them or your local imam before paying.
| Fasts missed | Fidya owed at $15 per day |
|---|---|
| 1 fast | $15 |
| 7 fasts | $105 |
| 15 fasts | $225 |
| 29 fasts | $435 |
| 30 fasts | $450 |
The safer position, and the one the Fiqh Council follows, is the cost of feeding a person a real day of food. If you can afford the higher figure, give it.
What Is Kaffarah and When Is It Required?
Kaffarah comes from an Arabic root meaning to cover. It covers a deliberate breach of a sacred obligation.
It became established through a well known incident recorded in Bukhari and Muslim, when a man came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) in distress after having relations with his wife during a fasting day in Ramadan. He was instructed to free a slave, and if unable, to fast two consecutive months, and if unable, to feed sixty poor people.
Kaffarah is owed when a Ramadan fast is broken deliberately and without valid excuse. The schools differ on the trigger:
- Sexual relations during fasting hours in Ramadan. All four schools agree Kaffarah is due.
- Deliberately eating or drinking. The Hanafi and Maliki schools require Kaffarah. The Shafi’i and Hanbali schools require only qada and sincere repentance.
Follow the ruling of your madhhab or ask a scholar you trust. If you ate or drank by genuine forgetfulness, nothing is owed at all. Your fast remained valid.
Kaffarah Amount and Order
Kaffarah is a ladder, not a menu. You move down only when the step above is impossible.
- Freeing a slave. Not applicable today.
- Fasting sixty consecutive days. If a single day is broken without a valid reason, the count restarts from zero. Ramadan and the two Eid days cannot be included.
- Feeding sixty people in need. Only if fasting sixty days is genuinely beyond you.
At the $15 per person guideline, feeding sixty people comes to $900 for each fast that was deliberately broken. Charities publish figures between roughly $480 and $900 depending on the per person rate they use.
Two rules people frequently get wrong. First, the sixty people must be sixty different individuals. You cannot feed one person sixty meals. Second, Kaffarah does not cancel the qada. You still make up the day you broke.
Kaffarah for a Broken Oath
Kaffarah al-Yamin applies to breaking an oath sworn in Allah’s name. Here the options are genuine alternatives, not a strict ladder. Feed ten people in need, or clothe them, or free a slave. Only if none of these is possible do you fast three days. At $15 per person, feeding ten comes to around $150.
The Mistake Almost Everyone Makes
Fidya is not a shortcut out of qada. If you are healthy and simply did not get around to making up last year’s fasts, you owe those fasts. Pay them back.
If you delayed qada past the following Ramadan without excuse, opinions differ. The Shafi’i and Hanbali positions add a Fidya payment for each year of delay alongside the make up fast. The Hanafi position requires only the make up fast. Either way, the fast itself is still owed.
How to Pay Your Fidya and Kaffarah
Both payments must be spent on feeding people who are genuinely in need. They cannot fund administration, construction or general causes. This is why the destination matters as much as the amount.
At MWA Charity we place this money where hunger is immediate, in Uganda, Bangladesh, Africa and other communities we serve directly. We document what we do. Photographs and videos of every completed project go back to the donor, which is why our donors keep returning to us. We are a 501(c)(3) tax exempt nonprofit, EIN 83-0841269, and your payment is tax deductible in the United States.
You can arrange your Fidya or Kaffarah through our daily donations option, or contact our team directly and we will ensure it is allocated strictly to food distribution. If you also have Zakat outstanding, keep it separate and give it through our Zakat appeal, because the two obligations are distinct.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I pay Fidya instead of fasting if I am healthy?
No. Fidya is only for those with a permanent inability to fast. A healthy person who misses fasts must make them up.
Is Kaffarah required if I broke my fast by accident?
No. Eating or drinking through genuine forgetfulness does not invalidate the fast, and nothing is owed.
Do pregnant or breastfeeding women pay Fidya?
Usually not. Most scholars require qada once the woman is able. Fidya is considered only where the difficulty continues indefinitely. Ask a scholar about your situation.
Can Fidya be given to one person?
Yes. Fidya may all go to a single person in need. Kaffarah for a broken Ramadan fast may not, as it must reach sixty separate people.
Can Fidya or Kaffarah be paid to family members?
Not to those you are financially responsible for, such as a spouse, parent or child. Other relatives in genuine need may receive it, and doing so carries added reward.
When is the deadline to pay Fidya?
There is no hard deadline, but pay as soon as it is clear you cannot fast. Giving during Ramadan is preferred, since food reaches families when they need it most.
Can Kaffarah be paid in instalments?
The obligation is settled once the full amount reaches sixty people. Paying in stages is permissible provided the total is completed and the recipients are distinct.
Does one Kaffarah cover multiple broken fasts?
The majority position is that each deliberately broken fast in a separate Ramadan day carries its own Kaffarah. Some scholars allow a single expiation within one Ramadan. Consult a scholar if several days are involved.
Can I pay Fidya with my Zakat?
No. Zakat, Fidya and Kaffarah are three separate obligations and each must be fulfilled independently.
Turn the Obligation Into Someone’s Meal
Whatever brought you to this page, whether an illness that took Ramadan away from you or a moment of weakness you regret, the way forward is the same. Calculate honestly. Pay promptly. Repent sincerely.
Then look at where that money lands. A widow with nothing in the house. A child breaking a fast on plain water. Your obligation becomes their dinner, and that exchange is exactly what Allah designed when He wrote feeding the needy into the verse on fasting. Give your Fidya or Kaffarah with MWA Charity and let a difficult chapter of your Ramadan end in someone else’s relief.
