I had excess wealth of QRs. 1,000 last year for which I had paid the zakat. This year I earned QRs. 200,000 out of which I managed to save QRs. 100,000 after all the expenses. Now, assuming that I did not spend the QRs. 1,000 that I saved last year, it adds up to QRs. 101,000. I would like to know if I have to calculate zakat on QRs. 101,000 or just QRs. 1,000 which has been sitting for one lunar year while the rest QRs. 100,000 has not completed the lunar year.
Answer:
Calculation of zakat on savings has been discussed on page 52 of the "Zakat Calculation" book. Some examples were given at the end of the book beginning on page 107.
Your questions is: if one has a savings of QRs. 1,000 at the end of last zakat year (on which zakat was paid), and a further savings of QRs.100,000 at the end of this zakat year (on which he wants to pay zakat), then on what amount should zakat be calculated: QRs.1,000 or QRs.101,000?
When calculating zakat on assets (such as savings), the important point to remember is that a lunar year has to pass before zakat is imposed on that wealth. Therefore, if you think a full year has passed on QRs.101,000, then zakat will be due on it.
On the other hand, if all of your money may not have been acquired at one time but at different times in the year (such as saving gradually throughout the year), then practically it might be difficult to keep track of which segment of money has fulfilled one year, and then to calculate zakat on each of these amounts as they fulfill one year.
Thus, one will be in the process of always calculating zakat throughout the year, if one is always earning and spending money throughout the year. Practically, this may be very difficult.
To make it easier to calculate zakat and to calculate only once a year, we proposed in our book that the amount of savings at the end of last zakat year and the amount of savings at the end of current zakat year (on which zakat is being calculated now) be compared, and the lesser of these two savings be subject to zakat since that minimum amount has been kept for one year. Likewise, the amount of savings one has at the end of this zakat year will be used to determine (i.e., will be used to compare) zakat at the end of the next zakat year.
This may be understood from the following examples.
Assume that one has been calculating zakat on Ramadan 11 of every year for the zakat year proceeding it.
Zakat Year Amount of Savings
1- Ramadan 11, 1423 to Ramadan 10, 1424 QRs. 5,000
2- Ramadan 11, 1424 to Ramadan 10, 1425 QRs. 105,000
3- Ramadan 11, 1425 to Ramadan 10, 1426 QRs. 40,000
At the end of the 2nd zakat year above (on Ramadan 10,1425), the zakat will be imposed on QRs. 5,000, since that is the minimum kept for one year (minimum of QRs. 5,000 and QRs.105,000).
At the end of the 3rd zakat year above (on Ramadan 10, 1426), the zakat will be imposed on QRs. 40,000, since that is the minimum kept for one year (minimum of QRs. 105,000 and QRs. 40,000).
This is a proposal that we adopted in our book in order to simplify the calculation of zakat and calculate it only once a year.
I would like to emphasize that it is only a proposal. If there is a way for one to know what segment of his savings has fulfilled one year, and he is able to keep track of these segments, then of course it would be most accurate to calculate zakat on each of these segements throughout the year.
Allah knows best.
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