Introduction
Fee collection is one of the most uncomfortable topics in Islamic education administration — and one of the most important. A maktab that cannot pay its teacher reliably will not keep its teacher. A maktab that cannot cover its basic running costs will not survive. And yet the Islamic culture around religious education — that knowledge of the Quran and deen should be free, that no child should be turned away for lack of money — creates real tension with the practical need to fund the institution.
Maktab fee collection in India sits at the intersection of Islamic principle and operational reality. This article navigates that intersection honestly: how to set a fee structure that is fair and sustainable, how to maintain the Islamic principle that no child should be excluded for inability to pay, how to collect fees with minimum awkwardness, and how digital tools — particularly UPI — are transforming what was once a cash-and-envelope system into something far more manageable.
The Fee Question: To Charge or Not to Charge
The Free Model
Many maktabs, particularly those attached to well-funded mosques or supported by active community donors, operate on a fully free model. Teacher salaries and running costs are covered by:
- Mosque committee funds (from congregational donations)
- Zakat and sadaqah from community members
- Dedicated donors who sponsor teacher salaries
- Waqf income where applicable
Advantages: No financial barrier to enrolment; deeply aligned with the Islamic principle that religious knowledge should be accessible to all; community donations are often more generous than modest fees.
Disadvantages: Dependent on continued donor generosity; vulnerable to financial instability if key donors reduce contributions; teacher salary may go unpaid if donation flows are interrupted; committee accountability for funds can be lower without the discipline of regular fee collection.
The Fee Model
Most Indian maktabs charge a modest monthly fee — typically ₹100 to ₹500 per month depending on location and the community’s economic profile. This fee:
- Covers part or all of the teacher’s salary
- Reduces dependency on irregular donations
- Creates financial predictability for the mosque committee
- Builds accountability — parents who pay fees tend to be more engaged with their child’s progress
The Islamic position: Charging fees for Islamic education is permissible and widely practised across the Muslim world. The qualification is that no child should be excluded from Islamic education solely because their family cannot afford the fee — hence the fee waiver system is essential alongside any fee structure.
Setting a Fair Fee Structure
| Factor | Guidance |
| Teacher salary | The fee structure should be sufficient to pay the teacher reliably every month. Work backwards from the salary needed. |
| Expected enrolment | Divide monthly costs by expected paying students (allowing for waivers) to get the minimum fee required. |
| Community economic profile | A maktab in a low-income area needs a lower fee than one in an affluent neighbourhood. ₹100–200/month in rural areas; ₹300–500/month in urban centres is a reasonable range. |
| Sibling discount | Many maktabs offer discounts for multiple children from the same family — reduces burden and encourages full enrolment. |
| Annual vs monthly | Monthly fees collected during the session months are standard; annual lump sum is rarely appropriate for low-income families. |
Sample Fee Structure
| Student Category | Monthly Fee |
| Standard | ₹250 |
| Second child from same family | ₹200 |
| Third child onwards | ₹150 |
| Fee waiver (genuine hardship) | ₹0 |
The Fee Waiver System: Non-Negotiable for Islamic Institutions
Every maktab that charges fees must have a functioning fee waiver system. This is not optional from an Islamic perspective — the Prophet ﷺ explicitly emphasised that knowledge should not be withheld from those who cannot pay.
How to Run a Fee Waiver System
Make it easy to apply. A simple verbal conversation with the mosque committee is sufficient — no embarrassing public declaration or complex paperwork.
Keep it confidential. The child’s classmates and other parents should not know who is on a fee waiver. This is a matter of dignity and basic Islamic adab.
Review annually. Families’ economic circumstances change. A family on a waiver this year may be able to contribute modestly next year; a family paying full fees may face sudden hardship.
Do not cap it too tightly. If 10–15% of enrolments are on waivers, this is normal and healthy for a community maktab. If the committee is limiting waivers purely to protect fee income, it has its priorities wrong.
Fund it explicitly. Budget for waivers as part of your annual plan — know that X% of enrolment will be subsidised and ensure your fee income from paying families and community donations covers it.
How Fees Are Currently Collected in Most Maktabs
In the vast majority of Indian maktabs, fee collection works like this:
- Parents bring cash — often in an envelope — at the start of the month
- The teacher or a committee member receives the cash and records it in a paper ledger
- Students whose fees are outstanding get an informal reminder from the teacher
- The committee reviews the ledger periodically — often only when a problem arises
- The teacher’s salary is paid from the collected fees (plus any donor top-up)
This system has worked for decades. But it creates several operational problems that are increasingly difficult to manage as maktabs grow.
The Problems with Cash-Based Collection
| Problem | Impact |
| Handling and security | Cash in a drawer or envelope is vulnerable to loss or theft. |
| Record disputes | No digital record means disputes about whether a fee was paid — and who received it — are impossible to resolve definitively. |
| Teacher awkwardness | Many teachers find it uncomfortable to chase fees from parents they see daily. The social friction discourages follow-up. |
| No summary visibility | The committee cannot see total fee income vs outstanding at a glance without manually reviewing the ledger. |
| Irregular collection | Parents who forget or don’t have cash on fee day create a fragmented pattern — some months collecting 60% of expected fees, others 90%. |
| No receipt system | Many maktabs do not issue receipts, creating audit difficulties and disputes. |
Moving to Digital Fee Collection
Digital fee collection does not mean parents must pay through a complicated bank portal. In India in 2026, it means UPI.
UPI (Unified Payments Interface) is the most widely used payment system in India — familiar to virtually every smartphone-using adult in the country. Paying via Google Pay, PhonePe, Paytm, or any UPI app takes 10 seconds and creates an automatic digital receipt.
How Digital Fee Collection Works for a Maktab
- The mosque committee or maktab administrator has a UPI-registered account (personal or institution account)
- The UPI QR code or UPI ID is shared with parents at the start of the year
- Parents pay monthly by UPI from their phone — at any time, from anywhere
- Payment is automatically recorded with date, amount, and payer name
- The administrator reconciles UPI payments with the student fee register in the management system
- Automated reminders are sent to parents with outstanding fees via WhatsApp
UPI and Online Payment for Maktabs
| Method | Best For | Notes |
| UPI (GPay, PhonePe, Paytm) | Monthly fee payments; most parents | Zero cost; instant; automatic receipt |
| Bank transfer (NEFT/IMPS) | Larger amounts; annual donations | Works but slower confirmation |
| Cash | Parents without smartphones; fee waiver families | Still necessary for a minority |
| Cheque | Large institutional donations | Rarely needed for monthly maktab fees |
Recommended approach: Make UPI the primary method, with cash accepted as a fallback. Do not eliminate cash — a meaningful minority of parents, particularly in less urban areas or older demographics, do not use UPI.
Transparency Benefit
One of the most valuable aspects of digital fee collection is the automatic transparency it creates. Every UPI payment creates a timestamped, named record. The mosque committee can see exactly how much has been collected, from whom, and when — without depending on the teacher’s paper ledger or manual count.
Handling Non-Payment Without Damaging Relationships
Late and non-payment is inevitable in any fee-based system. How a maktab handles it determines whether it damages community relationships or strengthens them.
Principles for Fee Follow-Up
Assume good faith first. Most late payment is not refusal to pay — it is forgetting, cash flow problems, or genuine hardship. Send a reminder before assuming non-payment is intentional.
Use WhatsApp reminders, not face-to-face pressure. A gentle WhatsApp message (“As-salamu Alaykum, fees for this month are still outstanding — please pay at your earliest convenience. JazakAllah khair”) is far less awkward than a teacher confronting a parent at pick-up time.
Separate hardship from non-payment. A parent who is genuinely unable to pay needs a fee waiver, not a reminder. If a family is consistently late and the teacher suspects hardship, a quiet private conversation — not a formal chasing process — is the right response.
Never make a child feel bad for their parent’s non-payment. This is an absolute principle. Fee disputes are between the institution and the parent — the child must never be made to feel the consequence.
Escalate gently if needed. If fees are significantly outstanding after two months, the mosque committee (not the teacher) should follow up with the parent directly, privately, and kindly.
Fee Records and Reporting to the Mosque Committee
The mosque committee is responsible for the maktab’s financial governance. Monthly reporting on fees should include:
| Report Element | Information |
| Total fees due | Expected income based on enrolled paying students |
| Total collected | Actual income received |
| Outstanding | Students with unpaid fees and amounts |
| Waivers active | Number and total value of active fee waivers |
| Teacher salary status | Salary paid from fees; any shortfall requiring donation top-up |
A digital fee management system generates this report automatically. A paper system requires manual compilation — typically taking 1–2 hours per month.
Conclusion
Maktab fee collection sits at the intersection of Islamic principle and operational necessity. Getting it right — setting a fair structure, running a genuine waiver system, collecting efficiently without social awkwardness, and reporting transparently to the mosque committee — requires intentionality and the right tools. The shift from cash envelopes to UPI is already well underway in urban India and is spreading rapidly to smaller cities. Maktabs that make this transition gain cleaner records, less teacher discomfort, better committee visibility, and significantly lower risk of disputed payments.
Ilmify handles the full fee management workflow — student fee status, UPI integration, automated WhatsApp reminders for outstanding fees, and monthly committee reports — all in one platform alongside attendance and Quran progress tracking. Explore Ilmify →
