Is Zakât Imposed on Any Amount of Wealth?
No. Zakât is due only on zakatable wealth that reaches an established minimum threshold for that particular kind of wealth. That threshold is called nisâb, literally, ‘origin,’ or ‘beginning,’ for it is the amount wherein the poor’s right in one’s wealth commences. Different types of assets have different thresholds. For example, the nisâb on money is 85 grams of gold (approx. 3 OZ US; 2.74 TROY OZ). The nisâb on cows is 30 cows. The nisâb on grain is 653 kilograms (Zakât Calculation, 46). If the quantity of the zakatable possession is less than its prescribed nisâb, it is exempted from Zakât. The table below illustrates the nisâb and Zakât rates, for each category of zakatable wealth.
