What Does Zakah Mean?

Linguistically, Zakah conveys purification, growth, and blessing. In Islamic law, it means worshipping Allah by giving an obligatory amount from specific wealth to a legally eligible recipient when its conditions are fulfilled.

It is called Zakah because it purifies the soul from stinginess, cleanses the wealth, and causes goodness and blessing to grow by Allah's permission.

Allah Most High says:

{خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَالِهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِمْ بِهَا وَصَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ إِنَّ صَلَاتَكَ سَكَنٌ لَهُمْ وَاللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ} [التوبة: 103].

Meaning: {Take from their wealth a charity by which you purify and develop them, and pray for them. Indeed, your prayer is a reassurance for them. And Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing.} [al-Tawbah: 103].

This does not mean that Zakah makes unlawful wealth lawful. Wealth acquired through theft, usurpation, riba, or deception has its own rulings concerning returning it to its owner or disposing of it together with repentance. It is not sufficient for a person to give 2.5 percent of it and retain the rest.

The Status of Zakah and the Ruling on Withholding It

Zakah is the third pillar of Islam, and Allah joins it with prayer in many passages of the Quran. When the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, sent Muadh ibn Jabal, may Allah be pleased with him, to Yemen, he said:

"إِنَّكَ تَأْتِي قَوْمًا أَهْلَ كِتَابٍ، فَادْعُهُمْ إِلَى شَهَادَةِ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ خَمْسَ صَلَوَاتٍ فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ وَلَيْلَةٍ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَدَقَةً تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ أَغْنِيَائِهِمْ فَتُرَدُّ فِي فُقَرَائِهِمْ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَإِيَّاكَ وَكَرَائِمَ أَمْوَالِهِمْ، وَاتَّقِ دَعْوَةَ المَظْلُومِ، فَإِنَّهُ لَيْسَ بَيْنَهَا وَبَيْنَ اللَّهِ حِجَابٌ".

Meaning: "You are going to a people from the People of the Book. Invite them to testify that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah and that I am the Messenger of Allah. If they obey you in that, inform them that Allah has obligated five prayers upon them in every day and night. If they obey you in that, inform them that Allah has obligated a charity upon them that is taken from their wealthy and returned to their poor. If they obey you in that, beware of taking the best of their wealth, and fear the supplication of the oppressed, for there is no barrier between it and Allah."

Agreed upon.

The companions, may Allah be pleased with them, understood that Zakah is a binding right inseparable from the other obligations of Islam. When some people refused to pay it after the death of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

"وَاللَّهِ لَأُقَاتِلَنَّ مَنْ فَرَّقَ بَيْنَ الصَّلَاةِ وَالزَّكَاةِ؛ فَإِنَّ الزَّكَاةَ حَقُّ المَالِ، وَاللَّهِ لَوْ مَنَعُونِي عَنَاقًا كَانُوا يُؤَدُّونَهَا إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَقَاتَلْتُهُمْ عَلَى مَنْعِهَا".

Meaning: "By Allah, I will fight those who distinguish between prayer and Zakah, for Zakah is a right attached to wealth. By Allah, if they withhold from me even a young she-goat that they used to give to the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, I will fight them for withholding it."

Agreed upon.

Fighting the group that refused to pay was an action of the caliph and governing authority. Individuals may not use force or violate people's lives and property under the pretext that they have withheld Zakah. A Muslim gives sincere advice, fulfills personal obligations, and refers public affairs and punishments to the competent lawful authority.

Someone who denies the obligation of Zakah while knowing that it is established in Islam and after the proof has been conveyed has denied a pillar known necessarily to be part of the religion. Someone who acknowledges its obligation but withholds it out of stinginess has committed a major sin but is not declared a disbeliever merely for withholding it according to the stronger view. Judging a particular person to be a disbeliever has conditions and impediments and must be referred to firmly grounded scholars and the Islamic judiciary. Individuals may not undertake it on the basis of a general article.

The Wisdom and Objectives of Zakah

Zakah has great purposes, including:

1. Fulfilling servitude to Allah by obeying His command and placing love of Him above love of wealth.
2. Purifying the soul from stinginess, miserliness, and blameworthy attachment to worldly life.
3. Supporting the poor, meeting their needs, and preserving their dignity.
4. Strengthening mercy and mutual support among members of the Muslim community.
5. Showing gratitude for the blessing of wealth, for wealth belongs to Allah and the servant is entrusted with it.
6. Purifying wealth from the obligatory right attached to it.
7. Training the Muslim in trustworthiness, precision, and self-accountability.

The blessing resulting from Zakah does not mean a guaranteed immediate numerical increase in wealth. It may take the form of preservation, contentment, reward, protection from harm, or compensation in this world and the Hereafter in a manner known to Allah.

Conditions That Make Zakah Obligatory

Some conditions differ according to the type of wealth, but the most important general conditions are:

1. Islam: Zakah is an act of worship and is valid only from a Muslim.
2. Complete ownership: the wealth belongs to its owner in a stable manner and the owner is generally able to dispose of it.
3. The wealth is subject to Zakah: not every possession is itself zakatable.
4. Reaching the nisab: the minimum threshold established by Islamic law for each type of wealth.
5. Completion of a lunar hawl: for wealth upon which a full year is required, such as cash, trade goods, and grazing livestock.

A hawl is not required for every type of wealth. Zakah on crops and fruits becomes due at harvest, while the right due on rikaz becomes obligatory when it is found. One rule therefore cannot be applied to every kind of wealth.

According to the majority of scholars, puberty and legal sanity are not conditions for Zakah to become obligatory in wealth. If a child or a person without legal capacity owns zakatable wealth that reaches the nisab and fulfills the conditions, the guardian pays Zakah from that wealth with the proper intention.

What Do Nisab and Hawl Mean?

Nisab is a legally prescribed amount below which Zakah is not obligatory. Once the wealth reaches it, the other conditions applicable to that type of wealth are considered, such as the hawl or the time of harvest. The nisab differs according to the type of zakatable wealth.

Hawl is one complete Hijri lunar year during which the nisab remains owned for the types of wealth that require a year. It does not mean a Gregorian year, and the Zakah date does not have to fall in Ramadan.

For cash, gold, silver, and trade goods, the amount generally due is one-quarter of one-tenth, or 2.5 percent, after reaching the nisab and completing the hawl. Crops, fruits, livestock, and rikaz have different amounts and rulings.

Because gold and silver prices change, a permanent article should not set a fixed nisab for cash in dollars or another currency. The Zakah Calculator may be used for assistance after identifying the assets included in the calculation, while scholars should be consulted about investments, debts, and complex cases.

Wealth on Which Zakah Is Due

The most important categories of zakatable wealth include:

1. Gold and silver and what takes their place in the form of cash and currencies.
2. Trade goods: wealth and merchandise prepared for sale with the intention of earning profit.
3. Grazing livestock: camels, cattle, and sheep when their conditions are fulfilled.
4. Crops and fruits upon which Zakah is due when their conditions are fulfilled.
5. Rikaz: buried treasure from the pre-Islamic period, which has a distinct ruling.

Contemporary issues require understanding their reality before issuing a ruling, including shares, investment funds, digital assets, companies, and debts. Looking only at the name of an investment is insufficient.

There is a well-known scholarly disagreement concerning permissible jewelry kept for personal use. The stronger view adopted by this website is that Zakah is due on gold and silver jewelry when it reaches the nisab and a hawl passes over it. The evidence for the issue may be reviewed in Questions and Answers on Zakah and Charity.

Property on Which Zakah Is Not Due

Zakah does not become obligatory upon possessions for personal use merely because they have a high value, so long as they are not prepared for sale and trade. These include:

1. The home in which its owner lives.
2. The vehicle the owner uses.
3. Personal furniture, clothing, and devices.
4. Professional tools and machinery used for work.
5. The leased property itself; rather, any saved rental income is considered if it fulfills the conditions of Zakah.

If a person buys property, a vehicle, or merchandise with the intention of trading it and selling it for profit, it becomes part of trade goods and receives a different ruling.

The Eight Categories of Zakah Recipients

Allah has defined the recipients of Zakah. He, Exalted is He, says:

{إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالمَسَاكِينِ وَالعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِ فَرِيضَةً مِنَ اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ} [التوبة: 60].

Meaning: {Zakah is only for the poor, the needy, those employed to administer it, those whose hearts are being reconciled, for freeing those in bondage, for those in debt, in the cause of Allah, and for the stranded traveler. This is an obligation from Allah. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.} [al-Tawbah: 60].

They are:

1. The poor: those who do not possess enough for their basic needs.
2. The needy: those who possess some means but not enough for their needs. Jurists discuss the distinction between the poor and the needy, but both are people in need.
3. Those employed to administer Zakah: people appointed by the responsible authority to collect, safeguard, and distribute it according to Islamic guidelines.
4. Those whose hearts are being reconciled: people for whom giving achieves a recognized Islamic benefit in reconciling the heart or supporting Islam. This is assessed by qualified scholars and the lawful authority, not merely by unrestricted personal judgment.
5. For those in bondage: helping contracted slaves obtain freedom and freeing slaves. According to a group of scholars, it also includes ransoming a Muslim captive, subject to Islamic guidelines.
6. Those in debt: debtors unable to repay a permissible debt, or people who incurred debt while reconciling others, subject to the recognized conditions.
7. In the cause of Allah: according to the majority of scholars, this refers to properly regulated Islamic jihad and what is connected to it. It is a matter for the governing authority, not an unrestricted label for every charitable project or a pretext for financing an unknown group or armed activity undertaken by individuals.
8. The stranded traveler: a traveler cut off from resources who needs enough to reach the destination or home, even if wealthy in the home country but unable to access that wealth.

According to the majority of scholars, Zakah may be given to one of these categories when need and benefit are established. Every Zakah payment does not have to be divided among all eight categories.

According to the stronger view, Zakah is not spent on constructing mosques, repairing roads, printing copies of the Quran, or general expenditures that do not fall within the eight categories. These are great causes supported through general charity and endowments, while Zakah has its designated recipients.

Who May Not Receive Zakah?

The share for the poor and needy is not given to a wealthy person who possesses sufficient means, nor to a strong person able to earn when permissible work sufficient for that person is available. Someone who is not poor may receive from another category, such as an administrator of Zakah or someone who incurred debt to reconcile others even if wealthy. Eligibility depends upon the reason identified in the verse.

A person paying Zakah may not give the share for poverty and need to someone whose maintenance is obligatory upon that person, such as parents and grandparents, children and grandchildren, or a wife, in order to replace the obligatory maintenance. If one of them qualifies through an independent category, such as a debt the person paying Zakah is not required to settle, further details apply and qualified scholars should be asked. Giving Zakah to an eligible relative whose maintenance is not obligatory combines the reward of Zakah with maintaining family ties.

As a basic ruling, Zakah is not lawful for Banu Hashim because the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

"إِنَّ هَذِهِ الصَّدَقَاتِ إِنَّمَا هِيَ أَوْسَاخُ النَّاسِ، وَإِنَّهَا لَا تَحِلُّ لِمُحَمَّدٍ وَلَا لِآلِ مُحَمَّدٍ".

Meaning: "These charities are only the impurities of people's wealth, and they are not lawful for Muhammad or the family of Muhammad."

Reported by Muslim.

A non-Muslim is not given from the share of the poor merely because of poverty, while voluntary charity may be given to a non-Muslim who is not hostile. The Zakah category of those whose hearts are being reconciled is an exception when its meaning and recognized Islamic benefit are fulfilled. Its assessment belongs to qualified scholars and the lawful authority, not merely to unrestricted personal judgment.

Intention When Paying Zakah

Zakah is an act of worship, so when paying it a Muslim must intend that it is the obligatory Zakah. The place of intention is the heart, and it does not need to be pronounced aloud.

If someone gives money as a gift or general charity and later wishes to count it as Zakah, it is not sufficient because the intention for Zakah was absent at the time of payment. A trustworthy organization may be appointed to distribute it, with the payer intending Zakah when delivering it to the agent.

The poor person does not have to be told that the money is Zakah if eligibility has been confirmed and disclosure would cause embarrassment. The payer or appointed agent must nevertheless confirm that the recipient belongs to one of the legally designated categories.

When to Pay Zakah and Paying It Early

Once Zakah becomes due, it may not be delayed without an excuse and should promptly reach an eligible recipient. It does not have to be paid in Ramadan; its due date follows the time when its obligation is established.

According to the majority of scholars, Zakah on wealth may be paid before the completion of the hawl after the wealth has reached the nisab when there is a need or benefit. The payer then reviews the calculation on the due date and pays any remaining difference if the wealth increased.

Someone who delayed Zakah for years must repent to Allah, estimate the Zakah due for the previous years as accurately as possible, and pay it without delay. A trustworthy scholar should be consulted if the calculation cannot be completed.

The Danger of Delaying or Withholding Zakah

Allah warns those who hoard gold and silver without giving their due. He, Exalted is He, says:

{يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِنَّ كَثِيرًا مِنَ الأَحْبَارِ وَالرُّهْبَانِ لَيَأْكُلُونَ أَمْوَالَ النَّاسِ بِالبَاطِلِ وَيَصُدُّونَ عَنْ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ يَكْنِزُونَ الذَّهَبَ وَالفِضَّةَ وَلَا يُنْفِقُونَهَا فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ فَبَشِّرْهُمْ بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيمٍ * يَوْمَ يُحْمَى عَلَيْهَا فِي نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ فَتُكْوَى بِهَا جِبَاهُهُمْ وَجُنُوبُهُمْ وَظُهُورُهُمْ هَذَا مَا كَنَزْتُمْ لِأَنْفُسِكُمْ فَذُوقُوا مَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْنِزُونَ} [التوبة: 34-35].

Meaning: {O believers, many rabbis and monks consume people's wealth wrongfully and hinder others from the path of Allah. Give good news of a painful punishment to those who hoard gold and silver and do not spend it in the cause of Allah. On the Day it is heated in the Fire of Hell and their foreheads, sides, and backs are branded with it, they will be told, "This is what you hoarded for yourselves, so taste what you used to hoard."} [al-Tawbah: 34-35].

For someone upon whom Zakah is obligatory, neither delay, the passage of many years, payment of taxes, nor separate charitable donations not intended as Zakah remove the obligation. It remains an obligatory debt until paid to eligible recipients.

Practical Steps for Paying Zakah

1. Identify the type of wealth you own: cash, gold, trade goods, crops, livestock, investments, or something else.
2. Determine whether it is zakatable wealth or property kept for personal use.
3. Learn its nisab and when its Zakah becomes due; the rulings are not identical for every type of wealth.
4. Gather accurate information about its value, ownership, and any debts connected to it.
5. Calculate the obligation according to the Islamic ruling rather than by guessing.
6. Form the intention for Zakah before paying it.
7. Confirm the eligibility of the individual or organization receiving it.
8. Pay it on time and keep a record that will assist you in future years.

For a detailed calculation, review Zakat on Wealth: Nisab, Hawl, and Calculation, then use the Zakah Calculator after identifying the assets included in the calculation.