Although zakat institutions in Malaysia have introduced digital payment platforms, the utilisation of e-Zakat services among eligible Muslim private-sector employees remains inconsistent, indicating that technological availability alone does not guarantee adoption. This study investigates factors influencing the adoption of the e-Zakat system provided by Lembaga Zakat Negeri Kedah (LZNK), using a modified Unified Theory of Acceptance and Use of Technology (UTAUT) framework. The model incorporates performance expectancy, facilitating conditions, perceived trust, and religiosity as antecedents of behavioural intention, with adoption of the e-Zakat system as the behavioural outcome and behavioural intention as a mediating construct. A quantitative cross-sectional design was employed, and data were collected via structured online questionnaires from 377 Muslim private-sector employees in Kedah, selected through convenience sampling. Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modelling (PLS-SEM) was used to assess measurement and structural models. The findings show that performance expectancy and religiosity have significant positive effects on behavioural intention and indirectly influence adoption through intention, while facilitating conditions and perceived trust do not exhibit statistically significant effects in the proposed model. Behavioural intention emerges as the strongest predictor of adoption, and the model demonstrates satisfactory explanatory power and predictive relevance. The study extends UTAUT to an Islamic digital zakat context by integrating religiosity and trust and offers practical insights for zakat institutions to enhance e-Zakat adoption by improving perceived usefulness and aligning digital services with users’ religious motivations.
Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behavior. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211. https://doi.org/10.1016/0749-5978(91)90020-T
Alalwan, A. A., Dwivedi, Y. K., Rana, N. P., & Williams, M. D. (2017). Examining factors affecting customer intention and adoption of internet banking in Jordan. Information Systems Management, 34(3), 206–222.
Chapra, M. U. (1992). Islam and the economic challenge. The Islamic Foundation.
Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use, and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly, 13(3), 319–340. https://doi.org/10.2307/249008
Gefen, D., Karahanna, E., & Straub, D. W. (2003). Trust and TAM in online shopping: An integrated model. MIS Quarterly, 27(1), 51–90.
Ghofar, A., Abdullah, M., & Rahman, N. A. (2024). Digital transformation and e-zakat adoption: A systematic review. Journal of Islamic Accounting and Business Research.
Hasyim, M., Abdullah, N., & Ahmad, M. (2023). Religiosity and technology adoption in Islamic financial services. Journal of Islamic Marketing.
Ishak, M. S., Abdullah, N., & Yusof, R. (2025). Digital literacy and e-zakat adoption in Malaysia. Journal of Islamic Social Finance.
Kahf, M. (1999). The performance of the institution of zakah in theory and practice. International Conference on Islamic Economics.
Kamaruddin, M. I. H., Rahman, R. A., & Abdullah, M. (2023). Digitalisation of zakat institutions in Malaysia: Opportunities and challenges. Journal of Islamic Social Finance.
Kamil, M. I. (2009). Gelagat kepatuhan zakat pendapatan di kalangan kakitangan awam Persekutuan Negeri Kedah (Doctoral dissertation). Universiti Utara Malaysia.
Kasri, R. A., & Sosianti, A. (2023). Determinants of digital zakat adoption: An extension of technology acceptance theory. Journal of Islamic Marketing.
Krejcie, R. V., & Morgan, D. W. (1970). Determining sample size for research activities. Educational and Psychological Measurement, 30(3), 607–610.
Lembaga Zakat Negeri Kedah. (2023). Annual report 2023. Lembaga Zakat Negeri Kedah.
Mansor, N., Ahmad, N., & Ismail, S. (2019). Digital transformation in zakat institutions: Enhancing efficiency through online payment systems. International Journal of Zakat.
Mohd Nor, M. N., Ahmad, N., & Abdullah, M. (2024). Adoption of e-zakat among Malaysian employees. Journal of Islamic Finance Research.
Muflih, M. (2023). Understanding Muslim consumers' intention to adopt digital Islamic financial services: Evidence from technology acceptance models. Journal of Islamic Marketing.
Nik Azman, N. H., Abdullah, N., & Ahmad, M. (2020). Online zakat payment systems in Malaysia: Challenges and prospects. International Journal of Islamic Economics.
Venkatesh, V., Morris, M. G., Davis, G. B., & Davis, F. D. (2003). User acceptance of information technology: Toward a unified view. MIS Quarterly, 27(3), 425–478.
Wahid, H., Ahmad, S., & Kader, R. A. (2009). Pengagihan zakat oleh institusi zakat kepada lapan asnaf: Kajian di Malaysia. Jurnal Pengurusan JAWHAR.
Worthington, E. L., Wade, N. G., Hight, T. L., Ripley, J. S., McCullough, M. E., Berry, J. W., Schmitt, M. M., Berry, J. T., Bursley, K. H., & O'Connor, L. (2003). The Religious Commitment Inventory–10: Development, refinement, and validation of a brief scale for research and counseling. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 50(1), 84– 96.
Zakat Kedah International Research Centre. (2024). Research report on digital zakat adoption in Kedah. Zakat Kedah International Research Centre.
Yusuff, M. S. (2020). Bacaan Intertekstual Terhadap Tafsir Nur al-Ihsan: Kajian Menurut Kaedah Ekspansi, Jurnal Dunia Pengurusan, Vol. 2, No. 2, 1-11, 2020.
Mazlan, A. H., Othman, Y. H., & Abdullah, W. M. (2026). A Modified UTAUT Model of e-Zakat Adoption among Muslim Private-Sector Employees in Kedah. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 16(9), 1101–1108.
Copyright: © 2026 The Author(s)
Published by Knowledge Words Publications (www.kwpublications.com)
This article is published under the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) license. Anyone may reproduce, distribute, translate and create derivative works of this article (for both commercial and non-commercial purposes), subject to full attribution to the original publication and authors. The full terms of this license may be seen at: http://creativecommons.org/licences/by/4.0/legalcode
