Ruling on Zakat for a Debtor and Ushr/Nisf Ushr on Agricultural Produce
Source: Fatāwā Rāshidiyyah, Page 409
❖ Question:
What is the ruling of Zakat on a person who is in debt?
❖ Answer:
Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu wa-s-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, ammā baʿd…
✿ Zakat for a Person in Debt:
✿ If a person is in debt and possesses 1,000 rupees in cash, while he owes 500 rupees in debt, then he must first repay the debt.
✿ The remaining amount (in this example, 500 rupees) will be subject to Zakat, if one lunar year has passed over it.
✿ Zakat is obligatory on wealth equivalent to 52.5 rupees, which is one-fortieth (1/40) of the total.
✿ One-fortieth of 52.5 rupees is approximately 1.8 rupees, close to 1.5 rupees.
✿ Similarly, if out of 1,000 rupees, 500 are used to repay the debt, then Zakat will be calculated on the remaining 500 rupees, and one-fortieth will be paid, provided a full year has passed.
✿ In the Case of Wheat or Agricultural Produce:
✿ If instead of cash, a person owns 50 man (traditional unit) of wheat, with a per-man value of 20 rupees, totaling 1,000 rupees, and he also has a debt of 500 rupees — then the ruling is different.
✿ In this case, Zakat will be paid first, and the debt will not be deducted.
✿ Expenses in Farming (Agriculture):
The following farming expenses are essential and will not be deducted from the yield:
◄ Cost of seeds,
◄ Labor of oxen or working animals,
◄ Wages of field workers,
◄ Cost of fertilizers.
These are necessary inputs and are not to be subtracted before giving Zakat.
✿ Watering the Land – A Shariah-Based Concession:
✿ If the land requires less effort and cost to be irrigated, then ʿUshr (1/10th of the produce) is obligatory.
✿ If irrigation requires greater effort and cost, then Nisf ʿUshr (1/20th of the produce) is obligatory.
❖ Examples:
✿ Lands irrigated naturally by rain are subject to ʿUshr (1/10th), since little or no effort is involved.
✿ Lands irrigated by mechanical or laborious means (like drawing water or manual watering) are subject to Nisf ʿUshr (1/20th).
✿ In our country, lands irrigated by small canals, watercourses, or tube wells all fall under the category of Nisf ʿUshr.
✿ Even though these do not require excessive labor, taxes and water usage fees (ābiyāna, etc.) apply — thus Shariah allows a concession to pay only 1/20th.
❖ Conclusion:
✿ If a person obtains 50 man of wheat from his farmland, then Nisf ʿUshr, i.e., 2.5 man of wheat, becomes obligatory as Zakat.
✿ The remaining 47.5 man is his to use as he pleases — whether he keeps it or spends it.
✿ Only 2.5 man will be due as Zakat.
ھذا ما عندی، واللہ أعلم بالصواب
