Intention of filing tax claims for religious donations: Results from a Muslim American survey

Abstract

This study examined the intention to claim exemption for zakat and other monetary donations on the annual tax return among US Muslims. We used a survey of 575 Muslims living in the United States to test several exploratory hypotheses. Our statistical results suggest that after controlling for other demographic differences, (1) respondents who identified as non-Sunni (as opposed to Sunni) Muslims, had medium or high (as opposed to low) income, and those who believed that Covid-19 is a Zakat-eligible cause had higher odds of claiming an exemption for their Zakat donations; and (2) permanent residents (as opposed to US citizens), high (as opposed to low) income earners, non-faith-based donors, and those who believed that Covid-19 is a Zakat-eligible cause had higher odds of claiming exemption for their non-Zakat monetary donations. Implications are discussed.