We have flocks of sheep and we have not paid zakah on them because we feed them throughout the year and buy their feed. Is it obligatory?
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The questioner : We have flocks of sheep and we have not paid zakah on them because we feed them throughout the year and buy their feed. Is it permissible to pay zakah on such flocks of sheep?
The Shaykh : We say: If a person has sheep that he acquired for breeding and offspring, there is no zakah in them unless they are grazing. Grazing means that they graze for most of the lunar year or the entire lunar year. However, if they are fed for most of the lunar year, there is no zakah in them. This applies if the livestock are for breeding, offspring, and milk.
However, if they are for trade, like a sheep owner who buys and sells them, they are trade goods in which zakah is obligatory in all cases, even if he feeds them. Their zakah is one-quarter of a tenth, and it is assessed by value, not by the animals themselves. For example, if he has one hundred sheep and he buys and sells sheep for a living, he estimates the value of these one hundred and pays one-quarter of a tenth, just as the shopkeeper estimates the value of the goods in his shop and pays one-quarter of a tenth of their value, even though he spent on them during the time the shop was open, on the containers for the goods, and the like.
In summary, if these livestock and flocks are for trade, zakah is obligatory in them in all cases, and it is one-quarter of a tenth of their value. If they are for breeding, milk, and offspring, there is no zakah in them unless they are grazing and graze for most of the lunar year. As for if they are fed, there is no zakah in them.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.
The Shaykh : We say: If a person has sheep that he acquired for breeding and offspring, there is no zakah in them unless they are grazing. Grazing means that they graze for most of the lunar year or the entire lunar year. However, if they are fed for most of the lunar year, there is no zakah in them. This applies if the livestock are for breeding, offspring, and milk.
However, if they are for trade, like a sheep owner who buys and sells them, they are trade goods in which zakah is obligatory in all cases, even if he feeds them. Their zakah is one-quarter of a tenth, and it is assessed by value, not by the animals themselves. For example, if he has one hundred sheep and he buys and sells sheep for a living, he estimates the value of these one hundred and pays one-quarter of a tenth, just as the shopkeeper estimates the value of the goods in his shop and pays one-quarter of a tenth of their value, even though he spent on them during the time the shop was open, on the containers for the goods, and the like.
In summary, if these livestock and flocks are for trade, zakah is obligatory in them in all cases, and it is one-quarter of a tenth of their value. If they are for breeding, milk, and offspring, there is no zakah in them unless they are grazing and graze for most of the lunar year. As for if they are fed, there is no zakah in them.
The questioner : May Allah bless you.