Understanding Zakat Payments: Guidelines for Paying Zakat on Property under Construction
Hanafi Fiqh
Answered by Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Question
I am paying monthly installments for a property that is under construction and is expected to be constructed entirely by next year.
The question is, should I pay zakat on the cumulative amount as of this Ramadan or the cumulative amount as of last Ramadan, considering that zakat is to be paid on wealth on which one year is completed?
Answer
After deducting your essential needs, you pay zakat on the cumulative amount you have this year. If you are above nisab and a lunar year passes without you having lost that wealth – meaning you don’t get to a point where you only have the bare minimum to pay your expenses – then you pay zakat on the amount you have at the end of the year. [Mawsili, al-Mukhtar]
Opportunity
See it as an opportunity to get closer to Allah. The Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) was commanded to “Take from their wealth charity which purifies them and makes them grow (…).” [Quran, 9:103]
The zakat will remove your sins and will aid you in developing as a believer.
May Allah grant you the best of both worlds.
[Shaykh] Abdul-Rahim Reasat
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
Shaykh Abdul-Rahim Reasat began his studies in Arabic Grammar and Morphology in 2005. After graduating with a degree in English and History, he moved to Damascus in 2007, where, for 18 months, he studied with many erudite scholars. In late 2008, he moved to Amman, Jordan, where he continued his studies for the next six years in Sacred Law (fiqh), legal theory (Usul al-fiqh), theology, hadith methodology, hadith commentary, and Logic. He was also given mastery licenses in the science of Quranic recital, and he could study an extensive curriculum of Quranic sciences, tafsir, Arabic grammar, and Arabic eloquence.
