Should he give his zakaah to his son because his salary is low?
Question

                Is it permissible for a father to give the zakaah of his wealth to his married son who does not live with him and whom he does not support? Please note that the son is living on a low salary.
Praise be to Allah.
    It is not permissible for a father to give his zakaah to his 
    son, because if the son is poor and the father is rich, the father is 
    obliged to spend on his son, so if he gives him his zakaah, it is as if he 
    is giving it to himself. 

    Ibn Qudaamah (may Allaah have mercy on him) said in 
    al-Mughni (2/269): The obligatory charity (zakaah) should not be given 
    to parents or to children. Ibn al-Mundhir said: The scholars are unanimously 
    agreed that it is not permissible to give zakaah to one’s parents in a 
    situation where the giver is required to spend on them, because giving 
    zakaah to them means that they no longer need him to spend on them and that 
    he is spared that duty, so he benefits from it, and it is as if he is giving 
    it to himself. 

    Similarly, he should not give it to his son. Imam Ahmad said: 
    Zakaah should not be given to one's parents or child, or son’s child, or 
    grandfather or grandmother, or daughter’s child. End quote. 

    There are two exceptions: 

    1 – If the son is in debt, in which case it is permissible to 
    give him zakaah, because the father is not obliged to pay off his son’s 
    debt. 

    2 – If the father does not have enough to spend on his son. 

    Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyah (may Allaah have mercy on him) 
    said, in al-Ikhtiyaarat (p. 104): It is permissible to give zakaah to 
    parents and other ascendants – meaning grandfathers and grandmothers – and 
    to children and other descendents – meaning grandchildren – if they are poor 
    and he is unable to spend on their maintenance, and also if they are in debt 
    or are slaves who have a contract of manumission with their owners, or are 
    wayfarers. If the mother is poor and has small children who have wealth, and 
    spending on her will affect them, then she may be given some of their 
    zakaah. End quote. 

    Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen (may Allaah have mercy on him) was 
    asked: Is it permissible for a person to give zakaah to his son? 

    He replied: That depends. If he wants to give it to him when 
    he is obliged to spend on him, then that is not permitted. If he wants to 
    pay off a debt on his behalf, such as if there has been a car accident and 
    the car that he hit was damaged, and the car is valued at tens of thousands, 
    then it is permissible for the father to pay it with his zakaah because of 
    this accident. End quote from Majmoo’ Fataawa al-Shaykh Ibn ‘Uthaymeen 
    (18/508). See also (18/415). 

    And Allaah knows best.