Is paying off a debt more important than zakah?

Question:
He says: Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, if a person has a debt, whether it is to a bank or to an individual, does he pay the zakah or pay off the debt, or what?

Answer:
He pays off the debt before the completion of the lunar year. If the lunar year has passed and he does not have the minimum threshold for zakah because he paid off the debt, then he owes no zakah. However, if the lunar year has passed and he has not paid off the debt, he pays zakah on the money he has.