Zakat
Zakat (zakaat, zakah), or almsgiving, is one of the five pillars of Islam. This means that zakat is mandatory for Muslims, along with the other four sacred pillars of prayer (salah), fasting (sawm), pilgrimage (Hajj) and belief in Allah and His Messenger, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) (shahadah). For every sane, adult Muslim who owns wealth over a certain amount – known as the Nisab – he or she must pay 2.5% of that wealth as zakat.
“…and those in whose wealth there is a recognised right, for the needy and deprived” (Qur’an 70:24-5)
Eligible Muslims pay zakat once a year, and it is due as soon as one lunar (Islamic) year has passed since meeting or exceeding the nisab (certain amount of wealth). The zakat of every Muslim is then distributed to those who meet the criteria to receive it. At Islamic Relief, your zakat is distributed with the utmost care to ensure that the most vulnerable, including children, those affected by war, disease and climate disasters, have access to the help that they need.
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Can provide two families with food for a month Can provide 50 people with two ready-to-eat meals per day in Gaza Can provide a family with shelter in an emergency |
The nisab is the minimum amount of wealth a Muslim must possess before they become liable to pay zakat. This amount is often referred to as the nisab threshold.
Gold and silver are the 2 values used to calculate the nisab threshold. The nisab is the value of 87.48 grams of gold or 612.36 grams of silver.
Nisab value (as of 28/02/2025):
Using value of silver (595 grams) – approximately $954.20
Using value of gold (85 grams) – approximately $3,913
Zakat is not just a fundamental pillar of Islam, it is also a revolutionary concept which can end extreme poverty – that is the power of zakat!
As Allah (SWT) tells us in the Holy Qur’an:
“And be steadfast in prayer and regular in charity: And whatever good you send forth for your souls before you, you shall find it with Allah.” (Qur’an 2:110)
It is also a right that the poor have over us.
“Those in whose wealth there is a recognised right for the needy and the poor.” (Qur’an 70:24-25)
Picture this: if just the 10 richest people in the world paid zakat – that would be a staggering $9.25 billion! The power of that money in tackling poverty would be huge.
When you give zakat to Islamic Relief, your donation is used in the most effective way possible to relieve the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable people.
Your Zakat has funded some of our crucial work with people and communities living in disaster and war zones: drought and famine-struck countries across East Africa and communities affected by conflict in Syria. Your generosity has enabled communities to build sustainable livelihoods in the face of climate change, and enabled better lives for vulnerable orphans and families across the globe.
Alhamdulillah, you have the power to transform people’s lives.
Islamic Relief spends your donations in the most effective way possible to relieve the suffering of the world’s most vulnerable people.
We spend the funds on the first category of zakat – the poor and needy. As administrators of zakat, we also take a proportion to cover admin costs of distributing aid (e.g the cost of petrol to transport the aid to a remote community). When you make a zakat donation, we take a fixed amount of up to 12.5% in admin fees.
Click here to find out more about how we spend your donations.
Fitrana is a charitable donation of food that is given before Eid prayer, therefore it must be given before the end of Ramadan. Fitrana must be given by every self-supporting Muslim who has food in excess of their needs, on behalf of themselves and their dependants.
Your Zakat donation should amount to 2.5% of your total zakatable wealth. Therefore, if your total assets (after any debts owed) amounted to $10,000, you would pay $250. Use our free and easy Zakat Calculator to calculate how much you owe.
The two main types are:
Here’s a list of Frequently Asked Questions that you can use for further guidance:
No, zakat is only prescribed for Muslims.
There are eight categories of people who are eligible to receive zakat.
A poor person is someone whose property, in excess of his basic requirements, does not reach the nisab threshold. The recipient must not belong to your immediate family, therefore; your spouse, children, parents and grandparents cannot receive your zakat. Other relatives, however, can receive your zakat.
For every year that you owe zakat, take 2.5% from the total wealth you had at the end of that year and pay that in zakat. If you are not sure how much wealth you had, you must estimate it to the best of your ability. E.g. It is now Ramadan 2024. You have not paid Zakat for the last 5 years. You need to work out how much wealth you owned every Ramadan for the last 5 years and pay 2.5% of that.
You can donate your Zakat now or use our Zakat calculator.
You must pay zakat with the intention of paying it. Therefore, it is important that you make an intention to give a donation as a zakat payment.
It is to be paid on the total savings regardless of what was paid on it in the past. Therefore, you would pay 2.5% of $10,000, $250.
The majority of the scholars from the past favoured the opinion that it should be paid. This is the same for both the child and the insane person. Therefore, their guardian should take the zakat from the person’s wealth and pay it on their behalf. However, some opinion suggest that it is not due on children and insane people, so please discuss with a scholar.
The best way for you to do this would be to take the jewellery to a jeweller and ask them to value just the gold and silver parts of the jewellery. The valuations they give will be the total on which you have to pay zakat. Precious stones are not liable for zakat.
Yes, as it is as if s/he is just storing your money.
The general answer would be yes, however we would strongly urge you to consult a scholar about this.
For the time that you were renting the house out and did not have the intention of selling, you do not pay zakat on the house. But you would still have to pay it on the rent you earned just like any other wealth you have. You must include it in zakatable assets from the day you made the intention to sell the house. You must also pay it on the selling price of the house. However, if you are paying in advance, you would need to estimate this. You would need to do the same for every year after that in which the house is still for sale. But to be absolutely clear, please discuss this with a scholar.
Every year at the time of paying zakat, you would need to calculate the total bulk selling price for all the goods for sale in your shop. E.g. All the clothes for sale in your shop add up to a total selling value of a particular sum of money. You would add this to your other zakatable wealth when calculating your total payment.
We have a zakat policy which has been reviewed by scholars and is available on our website.
We consulted a panel of experts to come up with our zakat policy.
We will always treat your personal information with the utmost care and will keep it private (read our privacy policy). You can opt out at any time by contacting us via email at [email protected] or by clicking the unsubscribe button on one of the emails you receive from us.
Adnan joined Islamic Relief in 2004 as a regional fundraiser in the UK. He worked in multiple roles over 10 years at Islamic Relief UK, including setting up the first digital team and leading the growth of digital fundraising and engagement. Adnan also led numerous fundraising and marketing campaigns, which played a significant part in the growth of Islamic Relief UK.
Having moved to Islamic Relief Worldwide in 2014, Adnan has held different roles that have helped grow Islamic Relief’s global digital footprint into new geographic territories, supporting Islamic Relief members with their digital and marketing growth as well as developing new products and initiatives for the Islamic Relief family.
Adnan graduated in Industrial Design and Technology from Loughborough University. He has since completed an Advanced Diploma in Business Administration from Durham University and a Diploma in Digital Marketing from the Institute of Data and Marketing.
Nadeem Azhar
Nadeem joined Islamic Relief Worldwide in September 2022. He has worked in the charitable sector for over a decade.
He studied Modern History and Politics at Manchester University, and at the University of Law in London before qualifying as a solicitor in 2011.
Nadeem is an experienced corporate, commercial and governance lawyer, having worked with various faith-based and grant making charities as well those in health and education settings. He was a partner at a law firm in London before moving in-house where he focused on setting up and restructuring charities and social enterprises.
Most recently, Nadeem was Lead Counsel at Mind, a leading mental health charity, where he co-authored a new federation agreement, revamped legal processes, and played a major role in developing its strategic and fundraising partnerships.
Nadeem has been a charity trustee for the Seafarers Charity, as well as many grant-making bodies and theatre companies.
Adnan Hafiz
Adnan joined Islamic Relief in 2004 as a regional fundraiser in the UK. He worked in multiple roles over 10 years at Islamic Relief UK, including setting up the first digital team and leading the growth of digital fundraising and engagement. Adnan also led numerous fundraising and marketing campaigns, which played a significant part in the growth of Islamic Relief UK.
Having moved to Islamic Relief Worldwide in 2014, Adnan has held different roles that have helped grow Islamic Relief’s global digital footprint into new geographic territories, supporting Islamic Relief members with their digital and marketing growth as well as developing new products and initiatives for the Islamic Relief family.
Adnan graduated in Industrial Design and Technology from Loughborough University. He has since completed an Advanced Diploma in Business Administration from Durham University and a Diploma in Digital Marketing from the Institute of Data and Marketing.
Martin Cottingham joined Islamic Relief in 2012 as IRUK Media Relations Manager, and was appointed Head of Communications in 2015 before taking up his current position as Director of External Relations and Advocacy for Islamic Relief Worldwide.
Martin has helped Islamic Relief to increase its mainstream media profile and expand its campaigning work, producing hard-hitting advocacy reports on floods in Pakistan (2011) famine in Somalia (2012) disaster risk reduction (2013) and aid to Afghanistan (2014). He has over 20 years’ experience working in media, communications and marketing roles for international development and environmental charities.
Martin graduated from the University of London with a degree in English and Drama (1982-85) then trained as a journalist with a postgraduate diploma at City University (1986-87). He has previously worked for Christian Aid as Editor of Christian Aid News and Media Relations Manager (1988-97) for Oxfam as Regional Campaigns Manager (1997-2000) and at the Soil Association as Marketing Director (2001-2006), as well as working for a wide range of organisations as a freelance writer, researcher and communications consultant.
Waseem Ahmad joined the Islamic Relief family over 24 years ago, serving as Programme Officer in the Balochistan province of south-western Pakistan before becoming Head of Programmes in Pakistan. Waseem then moved to Oxfam and Tearfund before returning to Islamic Relief to establish our mission in Malawi. Later serving as Head of Programme Funding and Partnerships, Waseem led the response to major crises across the globe, including the East Africa drought, Pakistan earthquake and the Indian Ocean Tsunami.
Waseem then served for nearly 6 years as our Director of International Programmes, during which time the charity secured and retained the coveted Core Humanitarian Standard certification in recognition of the quality of our programming. He was appointed CEO of Islamic Relief in May 2021.
With a special interest in community mobilisation and infrastructure, Waseem received an MSc in Project Planning and Management from the University of Bradford, as well as an MSc in Economics from Arid Agriculture University in Rawalpindi, Pakistan.
Waseem has also worked for Lepra Health in Action and is a member of the International Civil Society Centre’s Board of Trustees. The father-of-3 enjoys walking and playing football, and is a keen birdwatcher.