A 19-year-old girl asks about the validity of her fasting for three expiations of oaths, as she intended to fast nine intermittent days, but she did not specify an intention for each expiation at the beginning; rather, she specified the intention during the fast. She also inquires about clearing her liability from previous oath expiations for which she fasted instead of feeding the poor due to the difficulty of finding them.

All praise is due to Allah, and prayers and peace be upon the Messenger of Allah, and upon his family and companions. To proceed:

There is no need to intend expiation for a specific oath; a general intention for the expiation of an oath is sufficient. Fasting counts as one of the expiations. Resorting to fasting for the expiation of an oath is permissible only after being unable to feed, clothe, or free a slave. If you are unable to perform these options, then expiation by fasting is sufficient. It is permissible to appoint someone to perform the expiation in another country if there are no poor people in your country. If one is unable to do all of that, then fasting is sufficient because Allah does not burden a soul beyond its capacity. The expiation for an oath consists of three options (feeding, clothing, or freeing) to choose from, and one option (fasting) in sequence, to be performed only when the previous options are not possible.