Calculate Your Zakat

Zakat on Money, Gold, Silver and Trade Goods

According to Islam, zakat denotes an amount that persons who have reached a certain level of wealth (nisab) must give to certain groups for the sake of God. For zakat to become obligatory, in addition to the property reaching the nisab amount, it must be property that yields a gain (nāmī), must have been held for more than one year, and must exceed one year's debts and basic needs.

Basic needs are those elements that are indispensable for a person to sustain their life and freedom. They cover the assets set aside to meet such elements as housing, food, clothing, health expenses, transport, education, household goods, the tools and books required for one's profession or craft, materials used for security purposes, and daily expenses. (Mawsilī, al-Ikhtiyār, I, 332-333; Ibn ʿĀbidīn, Radd al-muḥtār, III, 178).

In calculating zakat, gold, silver, foreign currency, trade goods and their yields, together with immovable property held for investment, are taken into account. The nisab amount is 80.18 grams of gold, or assets of that value. Savings reaching this amount give rise to a zakat obligation when they have been held for one full lunar year (354 days).

If, at the end of the zakat year, after debts have been deducted and receivables added, the existing assets are worth 80.18 grams of gold or more, zakat must be paid. A person fulfils this obligation by calculating their zakat on the same date each year. What is taken as the basis is not the increases or decreases in the property during the year, but the total value held at the end of the year. However, there is no religious objection to paying zakat before the year is complete.

The rate of zakat is one fortieth (1/40) of total assets, that is, 2.5%. According to the Hanafi school, ornaments made of gold and silver are subject to zakat where they meet the other conditions of zakat. According to the Shafiʿi, Maliki and Hanbali schools, however, ornaments in a woman's daily use are considered a basic need and are therefore not subject to zakat. Nevertheless, if ornaments are held for investment purposes, zakat must be paid on them. (Nawawī, al-Majmūʿ, VI, 46; Ibn Qudāma, al-Mughnī, IV, 220). The Hanafi view has been deemed preferable as being in favour of the poor.

Precious stones such as diamonds and emeralds are not subject to zakat if they are used as jewellery or ornament. However, if they have been acquired for investment or trade, zakat must be paid on their market value. Valuables of this kind are assessed together with other commercial assets, and when their total value reaches the nisab amount, zakat is paid at the rate of one fortieth.

Where shares are held for investment purposes, they become subject to zakat at the rate of 2.5% when the dividends reach the nisab amount. Shares acquired for the purpose of buying and selling, on the other hand, are treated as trade goods and zakat is calculated on their market value.

Where income obtained from immovable property held for rental income or for trade reaches the nisab amount after the deduction of debts, and one year has passed, zakat must be paid at the rate of 2.5%. Buildings constructed for the purpose of trade are likewise subject to zakat at the rate of one fortieth of their market value.

Immovable property such as a house, plot of land or vehicle acquired for personal use is not subject to zakat. However, immovable property held for investment purposes must be assessed at its market value and zakat paid at the rate of one fortieth. If, when a person obtains income from the sale of such property, they have no money with which to pay zakat, the zakat for the past years must also be calculated and paid after the sale.

Zakat on Agricultural Produce (ʿUshr)

Note: The calculation tool computes the zakat on agricultural produce at the rate of 1/10 (one tenth). If you have expenses such as irrigation, spraying or fertilising, please state the amount of those expenses when making the calculation.

The nisab amount established for the zakat on agricultural produce obtained from the land has been set at five wasq for produce that can be stored for a long time, such as wheat, barley, maize and rice. In present-day units of measurement this amount varies between 653 and 1,000 kg depending on the type of produce. For wheat, for example, the amount is approximately 653 kg. For other agricultural produce, the amount corresponding to the lowest value of five wasq is taken as the basis.

The rate of ʿushr varies according to the method of irrigation. If the crop is irrigated by natural means, that is, by rain or river water without any additional expense, the zakat on the produce obtained is given at the rate of 1/10. Where, on the other hand, methods of irrigation requiring expense and labour have been used, this rate has been set at 1/20. Indeed, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "On produce of the land watered by rain and river waters there is one tenth; and on that watered by bucket, one twentieth" (Bukhārī, Zakāt, 55).

In the zakat given on produce of the land, the other debts of the person are not taken into account, apart from the expenses incurred in obtaining the produce.

The Opinion of the High Board of Religious Affairs on Zakat on Agricultural Produce

According to Imam Abū Ḥanīfa, all agricultural produce is subject to zakat, whatever its quantity (Mawsilī, al-Ikhtiyār, I, 372). Imam Mālik and Imam al-Shāfiʿī, however, stated that produce which can be stored for a long time and consumed as a basic foodstuff is subject to zakat (Ibn Juzayy, al-Qawānīn, 208; Shīrāzī, al-Muhadhdhab, I, 288). According to the view of Aḥmad b. Ḥanbal, foodstuffs that can be measured, weighed and dried, together with plant products such as cotton and flax, are included in zakat (Ibn Qudāma, al-Mughnī, IV, 155-160).

The great majority of contemporary scholars are of the view that storable agricultural produce (wheat, barley, maize, rice and the like) becomes subject to zakat when the amount remaining, after the deduction of production expenses such as fertiliser and pesticide, reaches the nisab measure (between 653 and 1,000 kg). For other produce, it is stated that ʿushr must be given once the amount corresponding to the lowest value of five wasq is exceeded (Shaybānī, al-Jāmiʿ al-ṣaghīr, pp. 130-131). This approach is regarded as the sounder one, both because it accords with the primary sources and because it benefits those in need.

As a general rule, ʿushr is given at the rate of one tenth on agricultural produce grown by methods of irrigation requiring no additional expense, and at the rate of one twentieth on produce irrigated with expense and labour. In present-day agriculture, additional expenses such as fertiliser, pesticide and diesel, alongside irrigation, occupy an important place. For this reason, according to some views, it is considered more correct to calculate zakat after deducting these expenses. Accordingly, for produce reaching the nisab amount after expenses have been deducted, the rate of zakat has been set at 1/10. If the calculation is to be made without deducting expenses, then the rate of zakat applied is 1/20.

Produce grown in greenhouses is subject to the same rulings, and the zakat on such produce must be determined according to these principles.