Who should pay kaffara?
Kaffara is paid by any adult Muslim who misses a fast or makes their fast invalid during Ramadan without a good reason and if they cannot fast at a later time for 60 continuous days. Below is a list of examples of how a fast can be broken or made invalid:
- Intentionally eating or drinking during fasting hours
- Sexual intercourse or masturbation during fasting
- Intentionally making yourself throw up
- Planning or intending to deliberately miss fasts
- Deliberately hurting yourself or any other person or animal
What is the required payment?
To atone for the intentionally missed/invalidated fast, a person must fast continuously for 60 days. If they are unable to do that, they should feed 60 poor people. Kaffara is due for each individual fast which has been intentionally missed/ invalidated.
In the UK this is at a rate of £5 per person (the average cost of two meals in the UK). This amounts to £300 kaffara for each missed/ intentionally broken fast.
As with fidya, kaffara is only valid if one will never be able to fast for 60 consecutive days. In circumstances where someone regains their health and can fast later in life, the kaffara they paid will be considered as charity and they must then make up the fasts missed.
