Is There Zakat on Shared Wealth Used For Family Household Expenses?
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Mawlana Ilyas Patel
Question
My sister and I jointly contribute to an account used exclusively for family household expenses, not personal use. How should we approach paying zakat on this account?
Can we calculate zakat based solely on when the balance in this shared account surpasses the nisab, regardless of our individual wealth?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate.
I pray you are in good faith and health. Thank you for your question.
Each of you will pay Zakat on what remains from your own individual contributions on the Zakat anniversary date. Either add it to your Zakat wealth, which each of you has, like cash, savings, gold, silver, assets, etc. or pay 2.5% of what remains in the account. You will not wait for it to reach the nisab amount.
You may deduct expenses for the upcoming month, such as rent, petrol, bills, food, etc. One is not, of course, obligated to deduct upcoming expenses – as not doing so is more beneficial to the poor and facilitates greater giving. It is superior to pay without every deduction, as that will be more beneficial to the poor.
Zakat Is on Each Individual’s Wealth, Not Shared
Zakat is obligatory (fard) upon every legally responsible i.e. a sane adult, Muslim who possesses the nisab, a minimum zakatable amount, for one whole lunar year. [Ibn ’Abidin, Radd al-Muhtar]
I would like you to go through the valuable answers and links below. You will receive guidance and direction, in sha’ Allah.
Related:
- SeekersGuidance Zakat Calculator
- Zakat: A Comprehensive SeekersGuidance Reader
- To What Extent Can I Deduct My Upcoming Expenses Before Paying My Zakat?
Why not begin your search for knowledge by signing up for a course on SeekersGuidance?
I pray this helps with your question.
Wassalam,
[Mawlana] Ilyas Patel
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Mawlana Ilyas Patel has received traditional education in various countries. He started his schooling in the UK and completed his hifz of the Quran in India. After that, he joined an Islamic seminary in the UK, where he studied secular and Aalimiyya sciences. Later, he traveled to Karachi, Pakistan, and other Middle Eastern countries to further his education. Mawlana has served as an Imam in the Republic of Ireland for several years and taught the Quran and other Islamic sciences to both children and adults. He also worked as a teacher and librarian at a local Islamic seminary in the UK for 12 years. Presently, he lives in the UK with his wife and is interested in books and gardening.
