What is the ruling on a woman whose husband prevents her from paying the zakah on her gold?
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The questioner : She says that she has gold and her husband trades in this gold. When does the zakah become due on it, Honorable Shaykh?
The Shaykh : On what basis does he trade in it? Did she give it to him for a profit-sharing partnership? Or did she give it to him as a gift? We do not know the details of the case. If the husband is trading in it, how can it be her jewelry? Because a woman’s jewelry is what she wears or keeps ready to wear.
The questioner : She says that she gave him this gold, Shaykh, with her consent, and he refuses to pay the zakah on this gold. She says this because the husband claims that worn gold or gold kept for use does not have zakah due on it.
The Shaykh : I say that the husband’s claim that worn gold or gold kept for wearing does not have zakah is undoubtedly a known opinion held by some scholars, but it is the weaker position. The stronger position is that zakah is obligatory on it. However, since the husband has prevented her from accessing it, she owes no zakah, because it is like a debt owed by an insolvent person. If he returns it to her, she pays zakah on it for one year only, and she does not keep it with him for ten years.
It is not permissible for any husband to prevent his wife from paying the zakah on her jewelry. If he prevents her, she should not obey him as long as she believes that zakah is obligatory on jewelry. We hold the stronger position, and it is not permissible for a person to force another person to adopt an opinion he does not accept. Because this is a matter of religion, and religion is between the servant and his Lord, and no one may stand between him and his Lord. It is astonishing that this husband says, “Do not pay zakah, because there is no zakah on it,” while she sees that zakah is obligatory. How can he prevent her from doing something she sees as obligatory upon her? And if he does not see it as obligatory, his opinion is his own. No one is forced to follow the opinion of any scholar unless the opinion held by the one who disagrees contradicts an explicit text from the Book or the Sunnah.
The Shaykh : On what basis does he trade in it? Did she give it to him for a profit-sharing partnership? Or did she give it to him as a gift? We do not know the details of the case. If the husband is trading in it, how can it be her jewelry? Because a woman’s jewelry is what she wears or keeps ready to wear.
The questioner : She says that she gave him this gold, Shaykh, with her consent, and he refuses to pay the zakah on this gold. She says this because the husband claims that worn gold or gold kept for use does not have zakah due on it.
The Shaykh : I say that the husband’s claim that worn gold or gold kept for wearing does not have zakah is undoubtedly a known opinion held by some scholars, but it is the weaker position. The stronger position is that zakah is obligatory on it. However, since the husband has prevented her from accessing it, she owes no zakah, because it is like a debt owed by an insolvent person. If he returns it to her, she pays zakah on it for one year only, and she does not keep it with him for ten years.
It is not permissible for any husband to prevent his wife from paying the zakah on her jewelry. If he prevents her, she should not obey him as long as she believes that zakah is obligatory on jewelry. We hold the stronger position, and it is not permissible for a person to force another person to adopt an opinion he does not accept. Because this is a matter of religion, and religion is between the servant and his Lord, and no one may stand between him and his Lord. It is astonishing that this husband says, “Do not pay zakah, because there is no zakah on it,” while she sees that zakah is obligatory. How can he prevent her from doing something she sees as obligatory upon her? And if he does not see it as obligatory, his opinion is his own. No one is forced to follow the opinion of any scholar unless the opinion held by the one who disagrees contradicts an explicit text from the Book or the Sunnah.
Source
قناة «فضيلة الشيخ محمد بن صالح العثيمين»، 872- ما حكم من منعها زوجها من دفع زكاة ذهبها/سؤال على الهاتف 📞 /ابن عثيمين — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.