Fatwa ID: 06309

Answered by: Alimah Zakiratul Hoque

Question:

As Salaamu Alaykum, I followed the position of taking the Gold Nisab, when I was thinking about the value of gold items that were bought for me when a child, I estimated 2 Tolas, then at one point I felt because I can’t pinpoint when if I reached the gold Nisab I know from puberty I met the silver one, I worked out for 6 years (from 2011), I didn’t finish then thought about putting Gold Nisab value from the beginning, then I wondered if I had overestimated the gold weight. 

My mother had told me it was under 2 Tolay, I then thought about finding them from where they are (I’m not 100% sure) and weighing them, after this having an estimate of figures, based on them, I may do not meet the Gold Nisab at specific points, I then thought about taking the Gold Nisab position (I used to hold this position prior), as I had worked out some years based on silver Nisab, could I still follow the Gold one after knowing the weight of those gold items added to other wealth?

Question: if once in my life I adhered to the silver Nisab position, then after learning more I followed my teacher and Shaykh who advocated to take the Gold Nisab and then I did so, then if after this there was a point where I thought I’d follow the silver Nisab when I thought I would struggle to calculate if I had missed payments based on the Gold Nisab but then on the same day after a while I thought I’d follow the Gold Nisab (thinking it may not be that hard to calculate potential missed payments and also if one wanted to pay less), would this mean that when I intended to follow the silver Nisab, wealth in my possession automatically became a debt based on the silver Nisab?

I.e. I started to calculate past years based on Silver Nisab but then I ended up switching to following the gold Nisab may be in the same sitting so that meant at certain points in the past according to the silver Nisab I would have to pay Zakat but according to gold I wouldn’t have had to and I chose the gold one even though first I chose the silver one (in the same period, sitting) and I paid Zakat based on the gold Nisab, do I have to pay anything more since initially I thought to follow the silver Nisaab and worked out based on that but then I chose the Gold Nisab to follow in the same sitting

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Answer:

Whether you paid based on the silver or gold Nisaab, you would have paid 2.5%, so there would be no debt on you. If, however, you had met the silver Nisaab in some years but had gone according to the gold Nisaab (or vice versa) and didn’t pay Zakaat for those years, you would need to make up for not paying Zakaat in those years as you had me the Nisaab (Al Muhit Al Burhani, Vol 3, Pg 158).

If you did not meet the Nisaab in silver or gold, then you should add the additional wealth you have (e.g., money in savings) and if you met either of the Nisaabs, you would have had to pay Zakaat (Badai Al Sanai, Vol 2, Pg 423)

إذا كان له أقل من عشرين مثقالا و أقل من مئتي درهم و له عروض للتجارة ق نقد البلد في الدراهم و الدنانير سواء فإن شاء كمل به نصاب الذهب و إن شاء كمل به نصاب الفضة

إذا وجب الزكاة في إحدىى الوجهين و لم تجب في الوجه الآخر فعليه الزكاة

Only Allah knows best.

Written by Alimah Zakiratul Hoque

Checked and approved by Mufti Mohammed Tosir Miah

Darul Ifta Birmingham