Answers to the most common Zakat questions: who must pay, Nisab thresholds (87.48g gold / 612.36g silver), the 2.5% rate, Zakat on salary, gold, crypto and debts, and when to pay.
Zakat is the third pillar of Islam: an obligatory annual charity of 2.5% (one-fortieth) of a Muslim's net zakatable wealth that has reached the Nisab threshold and been held for one full lunar year (hawl). It purifies wealth and is distributed to the categories named in the Quran (9:60).
The Nisab is the minimum wealth that makes Zakat obligatory. It equals the value of 87.48 grams of gold (about 7.5 tola) or 612.36 grams of silver (about 52.5 tola). Many scholars recommend the silver Nisab for cash and mixed wealth because it benefits more recipients.
For money, gold, silver, trade goods and most financial assets the rate is 2.5% of your net zakatable wealth above the Nisab, after deducting debts that are due. Agricultural produce is 10% if rain-fed and 5% if artificially irrigated (ushr).
Zakat is charged on wealth, not on income itself. Salary you have saved and still own when your hawl completes is zakatable at 2.5% together with your other assets; money already spent is not.
The majority of scholars require Zakat at 2.5% of the market value of gold you own, including jewellery, once it reaches the Nisab (87.48g of pure gold). Some schools exempt jewellery in ordinary personal use, so check the position of your madhab.
Crypto held as an investment or for trade is valued at its market price on your Zakat date and charged at 2.5%. For shares held for trade the full market value is charged; for long-term shareholdings many scholars charge 2.5% on the zakatable portion (cash, receivables and inventory share) of the company.
Debts that are due now, and instalments due within the coming year under the view of many scholars, are deducted from zakatable assets before comparing with the Nisab. Long-term balances beyond the coming year are generally not deducted in full.
Zakat becomes due when one lunar year (hawl, 354 days) has passed over wealth at or above the Nisab. Many Muslims choose Ramadan for the multiplied reward, but the obligation follows your own hawl date.
The Quran (9:60) names eight categories: the poor, the needy, Zakat administrators, reconciling hearts, freeing captives/slaves, debtors, in the path of Allah, and the stranded traveller.
For gold itself, use the gold threshold. For cash, savings and mixed wealth, most scholars recommend the silver Nisab because it is lower and benefits more recipients. If your madhab or scholar uses gold for money, follow that position consistently each year.
Hawl is one full lunar year (354 days) of owning wealth at or above the Nisab. Under the majority view, a temporary dip in the middle of the year does not cancel the duty if your wealth is at or above the Nisab at the start and end of the hawl.
No. Zakat is not taken from each payslip. Money from salary becomes part of your savings, and you pay once, on your Zakat date, on whatever you still own then. Salary already spent on living costs before that date is not charged.
Use the market price on your Zakat date itself, not what you paid and not an average for the year. Add exchange balances and wallets you control, convert the total into your currency, then include it with your other wealth for the Nisab test and the 2.5% rate.
Yes, the majority of scholars allow paying in advance once you own wealth at or above the Nisab, and many people do this to pay in Ramadan. If your wealth grows by the due date, top up the difference so the full 2.5% is covered.
Work out each missed year separately, using the wealth you owned on that year's due date and the Nisab and prices of that time as best you can. Total the amounts and pay them as a debt owed to the poor; a reasonable, documented estimate is acceptable when exact records no longer exist.
Deduct debts that are due now. For long-term loans and mortgages, many scholars allow deducting only the instalments due within the coming year, not the whole remaining balance. Deducting the full balance would remove Zakat from almost every homeowner, which is not the purpose of the deduction.