Get help with basic living costs
The Hardship Relief Fund gives grants for basic costs to vulnerable Muslims in the UK who are unable to pay for basic living costs.
This is a two-step process, please press the button below to register your interest in Zakat. You will receive an email within 3-6 weeks about whether you can apply for Zakat.
Support for those in need now
This fund is for people and families in need of support for basic essentials like food, clothing or heating. This money aims to get you back on your feet so you can start to build a better life.
Frequently asked questions
The Hardship Relief Fund provides cash grants towards monthly expenses, such as food and clothing, which you can spend as you need.
Please be aware that our grants are based on family size, and we do not pay towards debts.
To apply, you must be a Muslim living in the UK and be entitled to receive Zakat. To confirm that you can get help, we will look at how much money you have, your monthly income and expenses.
To apply for help from National Zakat Foundation you must have your own email address, mobile phone number, and a device able to connect to the internet.
The amount of help you can get depends on your family size. The help we give is a one-off grant and does not need to be returned to NZF.
The pre-application eligibility checker will give you an indication of the grant amount before you apply.
We may also signpost or refer you to other organisations that may be able to help you based on your situation.
We have a two step-process:
After registering for Zakat, you will be informed by email whether you will be able to make an application or whether we are over capacity.
You will receive this email within 3-6 weeks of joining the waiting list.
If we are above capacity, you will be able to apply to the waiting list again, after 1 month.
If you have been invited to apply, you will have 1 week to complete your application form.
Once you have submitted your application form, we will respond to your application within 2-3 weeks.
Once you have sent us your application, the Hardship team will make sure that you have given us all the information and documents we need to look at your application and that you are eligible to apply for help. If there is anything you have missed, you will be asked to send it to us within 7 days.
We will then look at how much money you have, your monthly income, and expenses, to confirm that we can help you.
If we can give you a grant, we will email you to confirm this and arrange payment for you. If we cannot give you a grant, we will email you to tell you why.
We can give you and your family one grant from the Hardship Relief Fund within 12 months.
To apply for help with Basic Costs, you will need to give us the following documents:
Valid Photo ID – for you, your spouse and any children under 18. We accept the following identification documents:
- Passport
- Full UK Photocard Driving License (can also be used as proof of address)
- EEA member state identity card
- Application Registration Card (ARC card for asylum seekers)
- Biometric Residence Permit (BRP card)
Recent Proof of Address – We accept the following documents to verify your address:
- Full UK Photocard Driving License
- Utility Bill
- UK Bank Statement
- National Asylum Support Service (NASS) tenancy letter
- Letter from solicitor stating your full address/location
- Letter from NZF approved referral agency stating your full
address/location - Council or housing association rent card for the current year
- NHS Medical card or letter of confirmation from GP’s practice of
registration with the surgery
Bank Statements – We will need the most recent 3 full months of bank statements for all your bank accounts. For example, if you send us your application on 2nd January, you will need to give us bank statements for October, November and December.
Universal Credit – If you receive Universal Credit you will be asked to provide your most recent statement. You can access your online account here: https://www.gov.uk/sign-in-universal-credit
If you have a bank account, we will send the money into your account.
If you do not have a bank account, you will need to get one.
In some cases, we can send you money via the Post Office through a pay-out service by sending you a voucher code by email. You will need to have ID for this service.
If you do not have an email address, you can make one for free here.
Although we may not be able to help everyone who applies to us, we are committed to providing a high-quality service to all our applicants. If something goes wrong, we need you to tell us about it. We will use the information you give us to help improve our service.
If you are not happy about any part of our service, please contact us via this page.
What will happen next?
We will reply to your email to confirm that we have received it within 5 working days.
We will look into your complaint, review any evidence available, and speak to members of staff if appropriate.
We will aim to reply to your complaint within 10 working days. If this is not possible, we will send you an update.
For more information on applying to the Hardship Relief Fund, please send us a message by clicking on the tab below.
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Do you still have questions?
If you have any questions that aren’t answered on this page, you can contact us below.