On what value do we pay the zakah on gold? Is it based on what it is worth when sold, or what it was worth when purchased, since there is a difference between the two?
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The questioner : May Allah reward you. The questioner asks, "Honorable Shaykh, on what value do we pay the zakah on gold? Is it based on what it is worth when sold, or what it was worth when purchased, since there is a difference between the two?"
The Shaykh : The zakah on gold is calculated based on its value at the time the zakah becomes obligatory. As the questioner mentioned, the value sometimes differs between the time of preparing for a funeral, yes, the value sometimes differs between taking out a loan and repaying it. The criterion is the value at the time of repayment. Similarly, in zakah, the criterion is the value of the jewelry at the time the zakah becomes obligatory. So, when the lunar year passes over this jewelry, we present it to the traders who deal in gold and ask, "How much is it worth?" If they say it is worth such and such, we pay one-tenth of one-fourth of the value. Yes.
The Shaykh : The zakah on gold is calculated based on its value at the time the zakah becomes obligatory. As the questioner mentioned, the value sometimes differs between the time of preparing for a funeral, yes, the value sometimes differs between taking out a loan and repaying it. The criterion is the value at the time of repayment. Similarly, in zakah, the criterion is the value of the jewelry at the time the zakah becomes obligatory. So, when the lunar year passes over this jewelry, we present it to the traders who deal in gold and ask, "How much is it worth?" If they say it is worth such and such, we pay one-tenth of one-fourth of the value. Yes.