They say: We are partners in a farm, and when the harvest season comes, a committee comes to assess the zakah, and then we pay them what they assessed. Is this sufficient even if the harvest is more than what they assessed?

The questioner : They say: We are partners in a farm, and when the harvest season comes, a committee comes to assess the zakah, and then we pay them what they assessed. Is this sufficient even if the harvest is more than what they assessed, or are we required to pay zakah on the excess if it reaches the nisab or more?

The Shaykh : Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, and I send prayers and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions. It is established from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said regarding the zakah of what comes out of the earth: Therefore, it is obligatory for the Muslim to pay this portion from what is subject to zakah among the produce of the earth if it reaches the nisab. If it turns out that the zakah collector, who is the committee that assessed the crops and took their zakah, assessed less than the actual amount, then it is obligatory for the owner to pay the zakah on the excess, whether this excess reaches the nisab or not. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) made a specific share obligatory, and its proportion, as you heard, is one-tenth or half of one-tenth, so it is necessary to pay this. Yes.