Is there zakah on olives?
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The questioner : There is an olive grove; is zakah obligatory on it or not, given that its expenses exceed its income?
The Shaykh : There is scholarly disagreement regarding olives: some scholars say that there is zakah on them because they are a fruit, so they are subject to zakah.
Some say that there is no zakah on them, and that zakah is only due on grapes and dates.
Some say that grapes are of two types: a type from which raisins are made, on which zakah is due, and a type from which raisins are not made, on which there is no zakah because it is a fruit.
The issue involves a long and extensive disagreement among scholars, but I say: if this man says that the spending on it is more than its fruit, what is the benefit of it then? Why does he not uproot it and plant in its place something that is fruitful and beneficial?
The Shaykh : There is scholarly disagreement regarding olives: some scholars say that there is zakah on them because they are a fruit, so they are subject to zakah.
Some say that there is no zakah on them, and that zakah is only due on grapes and dates.
Some say that grapes are of two types: a type from which raisins are made, on which zakah is due, and a type from which raisins are not made, on which there is no zakah because it is a fruit.
The issue involves a long and extensive disagreement among scholars, but I say: if this man says that the spending on it is more than its fruit, what is the benefit of it then? Why does he not uproot it and plant in its place something that is fruitful and beneficial?