Zakat on Rent Money: When is it Obligatory and How to Calculate

Understanding Zakat on Rent: Eligibility, Calculation, and Timing

Question: The tenants did not pay the rent for seventeen months. Now, when they pay the rent all at once as they have promised, will Zakat be obligatory on this amount? If so, what will be the method, considering that a year has not passed on the entire amount? How will it be calculated?

Answer: Zakat is not immediately obligatory on the rent money. For Zakat to be due, the money must reach the Nisab (minimum amount for Zakat) and a year must pass. Therefore, when the rent money is received and it reaches the Nisab, and if this amount remains for a year, then Zakat will be due at the completion of the year. Hence, there is no immediate Zakat on the seventeen months’ rent. The money must remain for a year and be equal to or above the Nisab for Zakat to be due.

 Sheikh Maqbool Ahmed Salafi حفظه الله

❪Jeddah Dawah Center, Hayy Al-Salamah – Saudi Arabia❫