وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱرْكَعُوا۟ مَعَ ٱلرَّٰكِعِينَ ﴿٤٣﴾
And establish prayer and give zakah and bow with those who bow [in worship and obedience].
Zakat
Zakat: the obligation and its place in Islam
The ruling in short
Zakat is the third pillar of Islam. Allah commands: establish prayer and give zakat (2:43), and tells the Prophet ﷺ to take charity from their wealth to purify and cleanse them (9:103). When the Prophet ﷺ sent Mu'adh to Yemen, he told him to teach the people that Allah has made zakat obligatory, taken from the rich and given to the poor.
1Who must pay
- Every Muslim, free, sane and adult (the Hanafi school requires adulthood and sanity; the other schools require zakat on the money of children and those who are not sane, paid by their guardian).
- A person whose wealth reaches the nisab and who has had it for a full lunar year (hawl).
2What zakat is due on
- Gold, silver and money, and goods held for trade.
- Livestock (camels, cattle, sheep and goats) that graze freely and reach the nisab.
- Crops and fruits at harvest (10% or 5% depending on irrigation).
- Buried treasure (rikaz): one fifth.
3A person who refuses
- Withholding zakat is a major sin, and the Quran warns those who hoard gold and silver and do not spend it in the way of Allah (9:34).
Where the schools differ
The four Sunni schools agree on the main ruling above and differ in these points. No school is preferred here.
- Zakat on women's jewellery. the Hanafi school requires it, and the majority of the other schools (Maliki, Shafi'i and Hanbali) say no zakat is due on jewellery worn for adornment in its permitted amount.
The evidence
From the Quran
خُذْ مِنْ أَمْوَٰلِهِمْ صَدَقَةًۭ تُطَهِّرُهُمْ وَتُزَكِّيهِم بِهَا وَصَلِّ عَلَيْهِمْ ۖ إِنَّ صَلَوٰتَكَ سَكَنٌۭ لَّهُمْ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿١٠٣﴾
Take, [O, Muhammad], from their wealth a charity by which you purify them and cause them increase, and invoke [Allah 's blessings] upon them. Indeed, your invocations are reassurance for them. And Allah is Hearing and Knowing.
From the Sunnah
Sahih al-Bukhari 8 Authentic collection
The point of the hadith: Islam is built on five: the testimony of faith, prayer, zakat, Hajj and fasting Ramadan.
Read the Arabic text
حَدَّثَنَا عُبَيْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ مُوسَى، قَالَ أَخْبَرَنَا حَنْظَلَةُ بْنُ أَبِي سُفْيَانَ، عَنْ عِكْرِمَةَ بْنِ خَالِدٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عُمَرَ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ قَالَ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم " بُنِيَ الإِسْلاَمُ عَلَى خَمْسٍ شَهَادَةِ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ، وَإِقَامِ الصَّلاَةِ، وَإِيتَاءِ الزَّكَاةِ، وَالْحَجِّ، وَصَوْمِ رَمَضَانَ ".
Sahih al-Bukhari 1395 Authentic collection
The point of the hadith: The Prophet ﷺ sent Mu'adh to Yemen and told him to call to the testimony of faith, then the five prayers, then to teach that Allah has made zakat obligatory, taken from the rich and given to the poor.
Read the Arabic text
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو عَاصِمٍ الضَّحَّاكُ بْنُ مَخْلَدٍ، عَنْ زَكَرِيَّاءَ بْنِ إِسْحَاقَ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ صَيْفِيٍّ، عَنْ أَبِي مَعْبَدٍ، عَنِ ابْنِ عَبَّاسٍ ـ رضى الله عنهما ـ أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم بَعَثَ مُعَاذًا ـ رضى الله عنه ـ إِلَى الْيَمَنِ فَقَالَ " ادْعُهُمْ إِلَى شَهَادَةِ أَنْ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ اللَّهُ، وَأَنِّي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ قَدِ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ خَمْسَ صَلَوَاتٍ فِي كُلِّ يَوْمٍ وَلَيْلَةٍ، فَإِنْ هُمْ أَطَاعُوا لِذَلِكَ فَأَعْلِمْهُمْ أَنَّ اللَّهَ افْتَرَضَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَدَقَةً فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ، تُؤْخَذُ مِنْ أَغْنِيَائِهِمْ وَتُرَدُّ عَلَى فُقَرَائِهِمْ ".
This is general information, not a fatwa. For your own situation, ask a qualified scholar.
Fiqh questions
Zakat: the obligation and its place in Islam
Zakat is the third pillar of Islam. Allah commands: establish prayer and give zakat (2:43), and tells the Prophet ﷺ to take charity from their wealth to purify and cleanse them (9:103). When the Prophet ﷺ sent Mu'adh to Yemen, he told him to teach the people that Allah has made zakat obligatory, taken from the rich and given to the poor.
Is this a fatwa?
No. It is a summary of well-known rulings with their evidence. For your own case, ask a qualified scholar.
What if my school differs from this answer?
Follow the view of the school you follow and the scholar who teaches you. The page lists the differences of the four schools.