Question:

Our mosque in our village in Pakistan has a huge fund collected over period of time in the form of donations for mosque. They have made a very nice building and even placed modern amenities.
When it comes to supporting Imam, they will not use that money and it is getting harder to keep a well learned person there. Is it ok to use mosque donations to support Imam’s Compensation.

Answer:

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh.

Masjid donations are for the necessities of the Masjid. The Imam is a necessity of the Masjid. Hence, it is permissible to give the Imam’s salary through Masjid donations.[1]

And Allah Ta’āla Knows Best

(Mufti) Abdul Azeem bin Abdur Rahman

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[1]  لَوْ وَقَفَ عَلَى مَصَالِحِ الْمَسْجِدِ يَجُوزُ دَفْعُ غَلَّتِهِ إلَى الْإِمَامِ وَالْمُؤَذِّنِ وَالْقَيِّمِ. اهـ. (البحر الرائق، ج 5، ص 228، دار الكتاب الإسلامي)

خير الفتاوى، ج 6، ص 473، مكتبه إمدادية