Established in 2004, the North American Imams Fellow (NAIF) represents a cooperative entity of Islamic leaders serving the multifaceted Muslim communities across North America. The Fellow acts as a unified platform for Imams and chaplains, a pivotal resource, and a point of reference for North American Muslims, governmental bodies, and media channels. In June 2023, NAIF issued a fatwa recognizing and supporting UNHCR as a suitable entity for the collection and distribution of Zakat funds from North American Muslims to …

The Supreme Council of Imams and Islamic Affairs of Brazil was established in Brazil in 2005. It aims to establish a unified legal Islamic authority representing Muslims in Brazil and recognized by Brazilian authorities and by Islamic institutions from across the Muslim world. It counts over 60 clerics and preachers from different regions of the country as members. In July 2022, the Council issued a fatwa endorsing the view that UNHCR is eligible to receive Zakat funds from Muslims in …

The Tri-State Imams Council is a non-for-profit organisation, established in the state of New Jersey in 2011. It aims to benefit from the expertise of Muslim scholars and develop their skills and qualifications for jurisprudence in the Muslim community of the Tri-State area (New Jersey, New York, and Connecticut). It counts one hundred imams from the area as members. In April 2022, the Council issued a fatwa allowing UNHCR’s Refugee Zakat Fund, as a reliable and trustworthy organisation, to collect …

Dr. Ahmed Al Haddad has served as the Grand Mufti of Dubai since 2011. He holds a PhD in Shari’a from Umm Al Qura University, Makkah, KSA. He serves as the head of Dubai’s fatwa department at IACAD and is mainly responsible for the regulation, edicts, and issuing all decisions concerning Islamic law and order in the emirate. In addition to this, he is a member to multiple Fatwa and Sharia Boards, a member of AAOIFI in Bahrain and wrote …

The Fiqh Majlis of Canada is an independent non-profit organization working with Muslim Scholars of Fiqh to act as a reference for all Halal issues (food & beyond) on behalf of the Halal consumers. The Majlis’ goal is to work with all Muslims who are concerned about Halal & Haram matters, with our areas of focus including: Accreditation, Research and Training. Their endorsements include the Canadian Council of Imams, Ontario Muslim Chamber of Commerce and the Muslim Council of Peel. …

Following several requests from donors interested to devote their Zakat al Fitr to refugees and IDPs, UNHCR reached out in April 2021 to Al-Azhar Islamic Research Academy to enquire about the permissibility of distributing Zakat al Fitr in cash to eligible refugees and IDPs. After confirming that refugees and IDPs fall under four of the eight categories of Zakat recipients, Al-Azhar Islamic Research Academy stated in its fatwa that they are entitled to receive Zakat Al Fitr, and that it …

Established in 1990, the Canadian Council of Imams gathers imams from around the country to serve the Muslim community in the country. The Council also act as an advisor on to Government agencies on topics related to Muslims. After reviewing the relevant documents provided by UNHCR containing information regarding its Refugee Zakat Fund, including the fatwas issued from various leading scholars and institutions within the Muslim world, the Canadian Council of Imams endorsed the view that UNHCR is an eligible …

The university-mosque of Al-Azhar, situated in Cairo, Egypt, is the foremost center of religious learning in the Muslim world and plays a significant intellectual role in Egypt and beyond. Al-Azhar was built in 970 as a mosque and became an institution in 1171. Al-Azhar Islamic Research Academy is the institution’s supreme body for Islamic research. Al-Azhar Islamic Research Academy issued a fatwa in March 2021 allowing UNHCR to receive and distribute Zakat funds, highlighting that most of the Zakat categories …

The International Shariah Research Academy (ISRA) was established in 2008 by the Central Bank of Malaysia as an Islamic finance and Shariah research institution. ISRA is recognized globally as a leading Global Premier Research Academy in the Islamic Finance industry, and has more than a decade of experience verifying and providing essential research on Islamic Finance to some of the top institutions around the world. In February 2021, ISRA endorsed UNHCR’s Zakat collection and distribution mechanisms as Zakat-compliant. The endorsement …

The Muslim World League (based in the Holy City of Mecca, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia) was established in 1962 following a resolution adopted during a meeting of the World Muslim Congress, held in the Holy City of Mecca on 14 Dhu Al-Hijjah 1381 AH (May 18 1962 AD). It is is one of the most important Islamic organizations in the world and aims to “present the true Islam and its tolerant principles, provide humanitarian aid, extend bridges of dialogue and …