Zakah on Debts in the Case of Delay or Inability to Pay
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
Question:
And may Allah bless you. Honorable Shaykh, a questioner says: How is the zakah on debts paid if they are with a person and you have been with him for more than seven years? How is the zakah on these debts to be performed?
Answer:
If this person is wealthy and generous, but is unable to pay, and it is you who left the debt with him, then zakah is obligatory on you every year, because it is in the status of what is in your hand, and you are the one who left it with him. It remains with him, and if you demanded it, he would hasten to pay it. However, if the debt is on someone who is unable to pay, or on someone who delays payment and you are unable to take your right from him, then there is no zakah on it until you receive it and it has been in your possession for one year. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh
And may Allah bless you. Honorable Shaykh, a questioner says: How is the zakah on debts paid if they are with a person and you have been with him for more than seven years? How is the zakah on these debts to be performed?
Answer:
If this person is wealthy and generous, but is unable to pay, and it is you who left the debt with him, then zakah is obligatory on you every year, because it is in the status of what is in your hand, and you are the one who left it with him. It remains with him, and if you demanded it, he would hasten to pay it. However, if the debt is on someone who is unable to pay, or on someone who delays payment and you are unable to take your right from him, then there is no zakah on it until you receive it and it has been in your possession for one year. Yes.
The presenter:
May Allah reward you, Honorable Shaykh
Source
نور على الدرب - الفوزان - 02/220 — archive.org (15:22)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.