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Tag: ramadan

Do I pay Zakat on savings only or on my checking account too?

Jul. 23 Financial Planning, Islamic Law 5 comments

zakat on savingsQuestion: Do I pay Zakat on my Savings only or on my checking account too?

Answer: Zakat is due on ANY surplus wealth. It must be more than the Nisab and is in your possession after one year passes. This includes: Savings accounts, checking accounts, actively invested shares or Mutual Funds. It also includes cash on hand, gold and silver (bullion or jewelry, etc). If you own a business it includes any inventory or property which is currently for sale, as well as business accounts (similar to those above).

Example: Ahmed owns his own business. He has a savings account with 10k and a checking account with 4k. He also owns a car posted on Craigslist for sale at 8k. His business account contains 4.5k, and he does not own any business inventory. He has possessed Nisab for one year, and he usually pays his Zakat on the 1st of Ramadan. He will pay 2.5% on 26,500 USD. He will pay 662.5.

Tags: 2.5%, business, cash, checking, craigslist, gold, inventory, Islam, Law, mutual funds, payment, ramadan, savings, silver, USD, Zakat

Countdown to a better Ramadan

Jun. 23 Community Comments Off

 

Tags: countdown, fasting, prep, ramadan

Purification of Wealth – A 3-Day Interactive Workshop on Zakah

Jul. 19 Islamic Law Comments Off

This July 30th to August 1st, myself and a few friends will be meeting to review the topic of zakat, covering all the essentials that one would need to perform this important act of worship and vital public service.

The class has been divided into 3 units, each concentrating on a different aspect of Zakat.

-          On day one, we’ll cover the reasons why we pay zakat and some of the etiquette involved. Then we’ll take a trip through the Historical Development of Zakat laws, touching on a few issues that will make a difference in how to understand the collection, distribution, and management of zakat. We’ll cover the virtues of charity and the responsibility of  Wealth, and how does that responsibility translate into giving Zakat and Charity?

-          On day two we’ll go over the Essential rules and concepts behind Zakat, covering the major areas that are relevant to both classical Zakat rulings and our social context at home.  Most importantly, we’ll cover the reasoning behind all of these questions, the primary evidence for them from the Quran and Sunnah, and establish principles for applying these concepts. Like day one, we’ll end with a review of the material.

-          On day three we’ll cover Advanced topics in Zakat, applying what we learned in days one and two as well as covering some additional topics relevant to our daily lives.

  • The personal and organizational management of zakat.
  • Do my student loans effect my liability for zakat?
  • What if I am paying a mortgage?
  • Do I have to pay zakat on my Roth IRA or my 401k plan?
  • I’ve loaned someone money, do I pay Zakat on that amount as well?
  • What about…
    • …Stocks, bonds, and mutual funds?
    • … insurance payments?
    • …political donations?
    • … gifts I give to friends and family I make dawah to?
  • How does zakat relate to paying taxes?
  • Can someone else manage the payment of my zakat?
  • Can an organization that manages zakat invest it for the poor, etc?

Along with this, we’ll discuss how Zakat helps not only to eradicate poverty, but how it can improve the social, medical, and educational well-being of our communities.

Lastly, given the closeness of Ramadan, we’ll cover the important topic of Zakat al-Fitr.

I hope to see all of you there this July 30th to August 1st.

Tags: charity, class, clinic, fiqh, Islamic Law, ramadan, sadaqah, zakah, Zakat, zakat al fitr