Zakah on a debt owed by another

Question:
He says: If I have a debt owed to me by a person, and the debt reaches the nisab for zakah, do I pay zakah on it when the lunar year has passed, or is there no zakah on it?

Answer:
Whether the debt reaches the nisab or not, you add it to what you have. You add it to the money you possess. If the debt is owed by a wealthy person who is willing to pay, you pay zakah on it every year, even if you have not received it, because you are confident that it will come to you.
If it is owed by a wealthy person who is willing to pay, if you ask for it, he will give it to you. But if it is owed by someone who delays payment or by someone who is unable to pay, and you do not know whether you will get it or not, then zakah is not obligatory on it until you receive it, and you pay zakah on it for one year only, the year of receipt. Some scholars say you pay zakah on it for a future year; you anticipate a year after receiving it, and then you pay zakah on it. Yes.