How is the zakah on commercial land paid?
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The questioner : A man trades in land. How does he pay the zakah on this land?
The Shaykh : Yes, he estimates the value of the land at the time the zakah becomes obligatory and pays one-fourth of one-tenth, whether its value at the time the zakah becomes obligatory is more than what he paid for it or less. If we estimate that a man bought a piece of land for one hundred thousand, and at the time the zakah becomes obligatory it is worth two hundred thousand, meaning two hundred thousand, how much does he pay in zakah?
Does he pay zakah on one hundred thousand or two hundred thousand? He pays zakah on two hundred thousand. And if he bought it for two hundred thousand and at the time the zakah becomes obligatory it is worth only one hundred thousand, how much does he pay? One hundred thousand. But sometimes land prices rise, and likewise goods do not stay still; if there is demand, their value rises, and if there is supply, their value falls. So what does one do?
We say he acts with careful estimation, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted:[At-Taghabun 64:16]. So he carefully estimates the value that corresponds to it at the time the zakah becomes obligatory and relies on that. Yes.
The Shaykh : Yes, he estimates the value of the land at the time the zakah becomes obligatory and pays one-fourth of one-tenth, whether its value at the time the zakah becomes obligatory is more than what he paid for it or less. If we estimate that a man bought a piece of land for one hundred thousand, and at the time the zakah becomes obligatory it is worth two hundred thousand, meaning two hundred thousand, how much does he pay in zakah?
Does he pay zakah on one hundred thousand or two hundred thousand? He pays zakah on two hundred thousand. And if he bought it for two hundred thousand and at the time the zakah becomes obligatory it is worth only one hundred thousand, how much does he pay? One hundred thousand. But sometimes land prices rise, and likewise goods do not stay still; if there is demand, their value rises, and if there is supply, their value falls. So what does one do?
We say he acts with careful estimation, based on the saying of Allah the Exalted:
So fear Allah as much as you are able
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْ
Source
اللقاءات الرمضانية لعام 1415هـ - 5 — binothaimeen.net (37:06)
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.