What is the ruling on delaying the payment of zakah past its due time once it becomes obligatory?
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Question:
I used to pay the zakah on my wealth in Muharram, but I delayed it until Ramadan, and the lunar year of possession had already passed in Muharram. What is the ruling?
Answer:
The ruling is that once zakah becomes obligatory, you must pay it at its due time. Do not delay it until Ramadan. This is because it is obligatory to pay it immediately, and you must not delay it past the time it becomes obligatory unless you are waiting for a poor person. If the delay is to wait for a poor person with a severe need, then you may delay it. However, if you delay it without a legitimate Shari'ah interest, it is obligatory to hasten to pay it, and you should not wait until Ramadan; because the needy person is in need in Ramadan and in other times as well. Yes.
I used to pay the zakah on my wealth in Muharram, but I delayed it until Ramadan, and the lunar year of possession had already passed in Muharram. What is the ruling?
Answer:
The ruling is that once zakah becomes obligatory, you must pay it at its due time. Do not delay it until Ramadan. This is because it is obligatory to pay it immediately, and you must not delay it past the time it becomes obligatory unless you are waiting for a poor person. If the delay is to wait for a poor person with a severe need, then you may delay it. However, if you delay it without a legitimate Shari'ah interest, it is obligatory to hasten to pay it, and you should not wait until Ramadan; because the needy person is in need in Ramadan and in other times as well. Yes.
Source
قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، ما حكم تأخير إخراج الزكاة عن وقتها إذا وجبت؟ للشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.