Qurbani
Qurbani is the animal sacrifice Muslims make during Eid al-Adha. It remembers Prophet Ibrahim's willingness to give up what he loved most for Allah. The meat is shared with family, neighbours and the poor. It must be done after the Eid prayer, not before.
HAF carries out Qurbani each year through its Qurbani appeal.
What the Word Means
Qurbani comes from the Arabic root q-r-b, which means to come close. The sacrifice is something offered to draw nearer to Allah.
Arabic books of Islamic law call it udhiyah, and that is the more precise term for the Eid sacrifice. Qurbani is the word used across South Asia, Turkey and much of Britain. They mean the same thing, so you do not need to worry about which one a charity uses.
One thing the word does not mean is "slaughter". The killing is not the point of it, as the next section makes clear.
Where It Comes From
Prophet Ibrahim was shown in a dream that he was to sacrifice his son. He told the boy, who answered that his father should do as he had been commanded, and that he would be found patient. As both of them submitted, Allah called out that the dream had been fulfilled, and ransomed the son with a great sacrifice instead (Qur'an 37:102–107).
Neither of them was asked to prove anything by suffering. They were asked whether they would obey, and once the answer was clear the son was spared.
The Qur'an is direct about what is actually being offered. Speaking of the sacrificial animals, it says that neither their meat nor their blood reaches Allah, but the mindfulness of Him from within you reaches Him (Qur'an 22:37). A verse elsewhere joins the two acts together: pray to your Lord, and sacrifice (Qur'an 108:2).
Is It Required, or Recommended?
You will see this answered both ways on charity websites, often with no explanation. Both answers are defensible, and the difference comes from the school being followed.
Hanafi scholars say it is required for every adult Muslim of sound mind who is settled rather than travelling and who owns wealth above the nisab, beyond what they need. The word used is wajib .
Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali scholars say it is a strongly encouraged practice rather than a duty. The phrase is sunnah mu'akkadah. They hold that someone who can afford it should not leave it, but that no sin attaches if they do.
Most British Muslims of South Asian background follow the Hanafi school, which is why Qurbani is often described in the UK as compulsory. If you follow one of the other schools, that is not the ruling that applies to you.
One detail often gets flattened. People say that anyone who pays Zakat must give Qurbani. It is close but not exact. The threshold is the same, but Qurbani carries no requirement to have held the wealth for a year, and it counts things Zakat does not. So somebody can owe Qurbani in a year they owe no Zakat.
When It Must Happen
This is the part that catches people out.
The sacrifice must take place after the Eid prayer on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah. Not before. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said that anyone who slaughtered before the prayer had simply provided meat for his family, and it did not count as the sacrifice at all. He told a man who had done so to slaughter another animal (Sahih al-Bukhari 5545; Sahih Muslim 1961).
After that, there is a real difference over how long the window stays open. Hanafi and Maliki scholars allow three days: the 10th, 11th and 12th. Shafi'i and Hanbali scholars allow four, adding the 13th. This is why two charities can advertise different closing dates in the same year, and neither is wrong.
If a charity performs your Qurbani in another country, the timing follows the place where the animal is, not where you are sitting. A Qurbani in Bangladesh is judged by Bangladesh's Eid. This is worth knowing if Eid falls on different days in the two countries.
The Animal
Only certain livestock count: sheep, goats, cattle, buffalo and camels.
A sheep or goat counts as one Qurbani. Cattle, buffalo and camels are large enough to be shared, and count as seven.
There are age requirements. A goat should be a year old, cattle and buffalo two years, and camels five. A sheep is usually a year old too, though a well-grown lamb of about six months is accepted.
The animal must be healthy. The Prophet ﷺ named faults that rule one out: an eye that is clearly blind, obvious illness, a limp bad enough to be plain to see, and an animal so thin that there is nothing left of it (reported in Sunan Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah).
What Happens to the Meat
The familiar arrangement is three portions: one for your own household, one for family and friends, and one for people in need.
That division is recommended rather than required. Scholars treat it as a good practice, not a rule that invalidates anything. You may keep more, or give away all of it.
That last point matters for anyone in Britain who pays a charity to carry out their Qurbani overseas. You will not receive any meat, and nothing is missing from your Qurbani because of it. The whole animal goes to families for whom meat is a rare thing rather than a weekly one.
Doing it yourself in the UK is possible, but it has to be done at a licensed slaughterhouse. Slaughtering an animal at home is against the law here, whatever the occasion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Under the Hanafi view, no. Each adult in the household who owns wealth above the threshold owes their own Qurbani, so a family of four qualifying adults owes four. A sheep or goat covers one person; a cow covers seven, and those seven may be different people. Schools that treat Qurbani as recommended take a more relaxed view of one sacrifice covering a household.
The country where the animal is. If Eid falls on a Thursday in Britain and a Friday where your Qurbani is being carried out, it is Friday's prayer there that opens the window. Charities handle this as a matter of routine, but it explains why a donation deadline may look earlier than you expect.
Anyone intending to give Qurbani is told to leave their hair and nails alone from the start of Dhul Hijjah until the sacrifice is done (Sahih Muslim). Hanbali scholars treat this as binding. Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i scholars treat it as recommended, so trimming does not spoil the Qurbani. It applies to the person giving, not to the rest of the household.
Yes, and many people do for a parent. If the person left instructions or money for it, the meat should all be given away rather than kept. If you are simply choosing to do it for them, scholars generally treat it as your own Qurbani with the reward gifted on, so the usual sharing applies.
Aqiqah is the sacrifice made when a baby is born, usually on the seventh day, and can be done at any time of year. Qurbani belongs to the days of Eid al-Adha and cannot be moved. One marks a birth; the other marks Ibrahim's obedience. Neither one counts for the other.
When It Must Happen
This is the part that catches people out.
The sacrifice must take place after the Eid prayer on the 10th of Dhul Hijjah. Not before. The Prophet Muhammad ﷺ said that anyone who slaughtered before the prayer had simply provided meat for his family, and it did not count as the sacrifice at all. He told a man who had done so to slaughter another animal (Sahih al-Bukhari 5545; Sahih Muslim 1961).
After that, there is a real difference over how long the window stays open. Hanafi and Maliki scholars allow three days: the 10th, 11th and 12th. Shafi'i and Hanbali scholars allow four, adding the 13th. This is why two charities can advertise different closing dates in the same year, and neither is wrong.
If a charity performs your Qurbani in another country, the timing follows the place where the animal is, not where you are sitting. A Qurbani in Bangladesh is judged by Bangladesh's Eid. This is worth knowing if Eid falls on different days in the two countries.
Only certain livestock count: sheep, goats, cattle, buffalo and camels.
A sheep or goat counts as one Qurbani. Cattle, buffalo and camels are large enough to be shared, and count as seven.
There are age requirements. A goat should be a year old, cattle and buffalo two years, and camels five. A sheep is usually a year old too, though a well-grown lamb of about six months is accepted.
The animal must be healthy. The Prophet ﷺ named faults that rule one out: an eye that is clearly blind, obvious illness, a limp bad enough to be plain to see, and an animal so thin that there is nothing left of it (reported in Sunan Abu Dawud, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i and Ibn Majah).
The familiar arrangement is three portions: one for your own household, one for family and friends, and one for people in need.
That division is recommended rather than required. Scholars treat it as a good practice, not a rule that invalidates anything. You may keep more, or give away all of it.
That last point matters for anyone in Britain who pays a charity to carry out their Qurbani overseas. You will not receive any meat, and nothing is missing from your Qurbani because of it. The whole animal goes to families for whom meat is a rare thing rather than a weekly one.
Doing it yourself in the UK is possible, but it has to be done at a licensed slaughterhouse. Slaughtering an animal at home is against the law here, whatever the occasion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Under the Hanafi view, no. Each adult in the household who owns wealth above the threshold owes their own Qurbani, so a family of four qualifying adults owes four. A sheep or goat covers one person; a cow covers seven, and those seven may be different people. Schools that treat Qurbani as recommended take a more relaxed view of one sacrifice covering a household.
The country where the animal is. If Eid falls on a Thursday in Britain and a Friday where your Qurbani is being carried out, it is Friday's prayer there that opens the window. Charities handle this as a matter of routine, but it explains why a donation deadline may look earlier than you expect.
Anyone intending to give Qurbani is told to leave their hair and nails alone from the start of Dhul Hijjah until the sacrifice is done (Sahih Muslim). Hanbali scholars treat this as binding. Hanafi, Maliki and Shafi'i scholars treat it as recommended, so trimming does not spoil the Qurbani. It applies to the person giving, not to the rest of the household.
Yes, and many people do for a parent. If the person left instructions or money for it, the meat should all be given away rather than kept. If you are simply choosing to do it for them, scholars generally treat it as your own Qurbani with the reward gifted on, so the usual sharing applies.
Aqiqah is the sacrifice made when a baby is born, usually on the seventh day, and can be done at any time of year. Qurbani belongs to the days of Eid al-Adha and cannot be moved. One marks a birth; the other marks Ibrahim's obedience. Neither one counts for the other.