Zakat – almsgiving – is an integral part of faith and is one of the five pillars of Islam, only second to salah – prayer. Allah Taʿālā repeated commands us in the Quran:
“وأقيموا الصلاة وآتوا الزكاة”
“And establish salah and give zakat.”
The Prophet ﷺ states:
“Whosoever is made wealthy by Allah and does not pay his wealth’s zakat, on the Day of Resurrection his wealth will be made like a baldheaded, poisonous snake with two black spots over it’s eyes. The snake will encircle his neck and bite his face and say: ‘I am you wealth, I am your treasure’.” Then the Prophet ﷺ recited the following verse:
وَلَا يَحْسَبَنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَبْخَلُونَ بِمَآ ءَاتَىٰهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ هُوَ خَيْرًۭا لَّهُم بَلْ هُوَ شَرٌّۭ لَّهُمْ سَيُطَوَّقُونَ مَا بَخِلُوا۟ بِهِ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ وَلِلَّهِ مِيرَٰثُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَٱللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌۭ
“And do not let those who withhold that which Allah has bestowed upon them from his bounty think that it is better for them. Rather, it is worse for them. That which they withhold will be their collar on the Day of Resurrection. Allah is the (sole) inheritor of the heavens and the Earth. And Allah is All-Aware of what you do.”
As for discharging this obligation, in principle, zakat is obligatory upon one who owns the quantum – niṣāb – at the beginning and the end of their zakat year. The niṣāb by the silver standard is 612.36 grams of silver or its value and 87.48 grams of gold or its value by the gold standard. One who owns that amount of gold or silver and/or cash and business inventory that amount to its value or more in total, after the subtractions of any valid deductibles, must pay 2.5% in zakat.
Invalid deductibles