What counts as zakatable wealth

  • Cash at home and money in bank accounts
  • Gold and silver, including jewellery (in the Hanafi school)
  • Business stock (goods held for sale), valued at the selling price
  • Money other people owe you that you expect to get back
  • Shares, mutual funds and other investments

Things you use yourself are not zakatable: the house you live in, your car, furniture, clothes and household items.

The nisab: the minimum wealth

Zakat is only due if your net wealth stays at or above the nisab for a full lunar year. Most scholars in Pakistan use the silver nisab: the value of 52.5 tola (612.36 g) of silver, because it is lower and so helps more people in need. For 2026 the government set the nisab for bank deduction at Rs 5,03,529, based on silver at Rs 9,591 per tola. Silver prices move, so work out the nisab on your own zakat date.

Step by step

  1. Pick your zakat date. Use the same Islamic date each year, often in Ramadan.
  2. Add up your zakatable assets at today's value, not what you paid.
  3. Subtract debts due now, such as bills and installments due. Don't subtract the whole of a long-term loan.
  4. Compare with the nisab. If your net wealth is below it, no zakat is due.
  5. Pay 2.5% of the net amount.

Worked example

Cash and bank Rs 3,50,000, gold worth Rs 6,00,000, business stock Rs 1,50,000 and money owed to you Rs 50,000 make Rs 11,50,000. Debts due are Rs 80,000, leaving Rs 10,70,000, which is above the nisab. Zakat = 2.5% × 10,70,000 = Rs 26,750.

Gold and jewellery

Value gold at the current rate for its purity. 22 karat jewellery is 91.7% pure, so its value is about 22/24 of the 24 karat rate. Our gold calculator does this with today's international price, and you can type your local sarafa rate instead.

Bank deduction in Ramadan

Banks deduct zakat from some savings accounts on the 1st of Ramadan unless you have filed a declaration. If the bank has already deducted it, don't pay zakat on that same money again.

This guide follows common Hanafi practice. For special cases, such as business partnerships, agricultural produce or long-term receivables, ask a qualified scholar.