I want to pay a Kaffarat Yameen (money for expiation of oath) as a cash donation to an organization that distributes money to the poor. Due to donation restrictions in the United States, I thought to pay it to our local Islamic center, which uses money for improving the center building. Will this be considered okay, even if the money did not go to poor, or should I make sure that the money goes to poor people.

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions.

The money that is given for Kafarah (expiation), should be given to the poor and destitute people, as Allah Says (interpretation of meaning): {Allâh will not punish you for what is uninentional in your oaths, but He will punish you for your deliberate oaths; for its expiation (a deliberate oath) feed ten Masâkin (poor persons), on a scale of the average of that with which you feed your own families; or clothe them; or manumit a slave….}[5:89].

Therefore, the Kafarah should be paid on what Allah has specified, which is the poor or needy people.

The majority of scholars are of the view that it should be given as food for the poor.  There is no harm for a person to distribute it himself or to give it away to whom he trusts so that the latter would spend it as appropriate.

Spending the money of Kafarah in other fields does not serve its purpose.

In Al-Mudawwana (Book), according to Imam Malik, spending money of Kaffarah oath on mosques, does not suffice.  The only thing that it should be spent on is what Allah has specified: {….for its expiation (a deliberate oath) feed ten Masâkin (poor persons),….}[5:89].