Zakat & Charity
Zakat is the yearly almsgiving of Islamic practice, and this topic also covers giving beyond it. Most questions here are about arithmetic and timing rather than principle. Readers ask which assets count, who may receive a payment, and when a year has completed. The pages below cover zakat basics and nisab, the minimum threshold, zakat on money and gold, and who may receive zakat. Every answer here is a sourced summary of a fatwa published on Ftawy, with the full ruling one tap away. Missed and delayed zakat has its own pages if that is what brought you here.
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Questions · 5,824 questions
What is the ruling on playing "Clash of Clans" where virtual resources are purchased with real money, and then spoils are taken from them when players are attacked?
Is Zakat obligatory on a sum of 2000, or on shares valued at 5040 dinars, or on a sum of 10000, while having outstanding debts?
Is zakat due on money invested in a stalled real estate project?
Is it permissible to give zakat to those who have not received their salaries for several months, knowing that they will become self-sufficient upon receiving their salaries?
What is the ruling on zakat for money collected monthly with the intention of purchasing land or a family resting place, and how is it to be disbursed if it becomes obligatory, and is it permissible to spend it on building mosques, Quran memorization circles, and sponsoring orphans?
How is the Zakat calculated for agricultural land that was purchased with the intention of trade five years ago, knowing that he only has his salary?
Is it permissible for a son to pay the mahr (dower) owed to his mother on behalf of his unemployed father?
What is the method for paying Zakat on funds collected by charities designated for purchasing housing, what is its monetary amount, and is it permissible to disburse it in the inquirer's country?
Does the expiation for an oath (kaffarat al-yameen) - whether fasting or feeding - vary according to the financial status of the one performing the expiation at the time it becomes due and at the time it is fulfilled? And is it obligatory to provide a side dish (idam) in the feeding expiation? And is it permissible to give the expiation for an oath to Zakat al-Fitr funds?
Is it permissible for a husband to give sadaqah to his wealthy mother and sister while he is 26 million in debt and his wife lives with him in extremely difficult financial circumstances?
Does Zakat become obligatory on an amount of 200,000 EGP that has completed a full year (hawl), given that I have real estate debts amounting to 350,000 EGP, and are these debts to be deducted from the amount subject to Zakat?
Is Zakat obligatory on a fluctuating sum of money in a bank account, ranging between 35,000 and zero?
Is it permissible for the one entrusted with distributing Zakat to give it to his impoverished cousin who is in debt, and then demand that he repay his debt and his mother's debt, or must he seek permission from the Zakat-payer (the one who appointed him)?
How is the zakat calculated for a wireless internet service provision project, and is zakat obligatory on the network devices, and how are the annual sales calculated for zakat?
What is the expiation for selling a stolen gold chain to one's mother without informing her of its theft and without taking any payment, and is it obligatory to disclose this to the mother? And what is the ruling on purchasing a driver's license and the consequent rulings thereof, such as the income derived from it, and is it obligatory to dispose of this license?
Am I obligated to pay Zakat, and how much is it, and how do I calculate it, given that I have not paid Zakat for two years because I believed it was not obligatory for someone who is saving money for marriage?
Is zakat due on a sum of money collected by the deceased father, knowing that it was designated for the expenses of the death and the condolence, and is zakat calculated on the value of silver retroactively?
Is it permissible for the members of the board of trustees of a hospital, whose construction has not been completed, to donate the remaining amount from the popular committees' contributions to another public project, such as a school?
Is zakat due on the principal of an investment deposit, and what is the difference between zakat on a bank deposit, an investment deposit with a return, and an investment deposit based on Mudarabah? What is the benefit of depositing money for investment Mudarabah if zakat is due on the principal, and is there a difference between zakat on money and zakat on cash?
Is it permissible to give zakat to an uncle who built a house and is in debt that he cannot pay off with his salary?
Is it taken into consideration when paying Zakat that the wealth reached the Nisab on Ashura of last year, despite doubts about it? And are borrowed funds included in the Zakat Nisab? And is Zakat paid on the determined Nisab or on the entire amount currently owned, including borrowed funds? And is it necessary to verify that the Nisab has been reached before paying Zakat on Ashura?
What is the Sharia threshold (nisab) for money in dollars or Jordanian dinars?
What is the minimum amount of money that necessitates purification (zakat) for a year, and does that include 50 Riyals?
Is it permissible to give from the Zakat money to the orphaned son of one's sister, who lives on sporadic aid and has a small pension and a saved plot of land?