Transferring Zakah outside the country

A: If the case is as you have mentioned, there is no prohibition on transferring it to another country where there are poor people to whom you can pay Zakah. The basic principle regarding the permissibility is the Prophet's statement (peace be upon him) to Mu`adh : (Part No. 9; Page No. 416) Tell them that they are obliged (i.e. Allah has enjoined upon them) to offer charity (i.e. Zakah), to be taken from their rich and given to their poor. Therefore, if one does not find people eligible to receive Zakah in the country of origin, it is permissible to transfer it, since Zakah recipients do not exist therein. It is narrated by Abu `Ubayd in his book Al-Amwal i.e. The Wealth, that Mu`adh (may Allah be pleased with him) sent `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) Sadaqah (i.e., Zakah) from Yemen, but `Umar disapproved and said: "I did not send you to collect tax or Jizyah (poll tax required from non-Muslims living in an Islamic state), rather, I sent you to take from their rich and give it to their poor". Mu`adh replied: "I would not have sent you anything were I to have found even one person who would take it from me". May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.