Every able Muslim is obligated to tackle inequality by giving Zakat. Akhuwat’s Islamic Microlending Scheme, Qarz-e-Hasna can help you do it sustainably.
Zakat is an obligatory charity in Islam. It enables the distribution of surplus wealth to the needy. At Akhuwat, we believe Zakat has the power to eradicate world poverty if it were applied on a wide enough scale. The term ‘Zakat’ in Arabic literally means to cleanse. As the third pillar of Islam, Zakat is a form of worship and a way for us to cleanse our wealth.
Paying Zakat is mandatory for all Muslims who have surplus wealth, which they aren’t using for their own basic needs. These surplus savings you have must be above a set minimum amount, called ‘Nisab.’ If it is, and if you’ve held these savings for a year, then you should be paying Zakat. Your Zakat is calculated on 2.5% of your savings, which the poor and needy have a right over.
The value of Nisab is determined through today’s value of gold and silver.
87.48 grams (3oz) is Nisab by the gold standard
612.36 grams (21oz) is Nisab by the silver standard
Zakat isn’t payable on personal assets like the home you live in or the car you drive. Neither is it payable on tools of trade, which allow you to earn a living. Assets that Zakat is payable on include:
Akhuwat turns your Zakat into Shariah-approved advances for widows and needy families through our core programme: Islamic Microlending. These amounts that are advanced to borrowers are called Qarz-e-Hasna. Our recipient families use the funds to gain a sustainable livelihood or boost the one they already have. This lifts them out of poverty through their own hard work. Akhuwat’s Qarz-e-Hasna are granted strictly without interest, so our recipients only pay back the capital amount they’ve borrowed. No one makes a profit off their hard work, but them.
Next year, the widows and families who received your Zakat as Qarz-e-Hasna, won’t be reliant on charity anymore. And when they pay back the funds, these are used to help different families with new Qarz-e-Hasna. In this way, together, we are helping to break the poverty cycle. The Zakat you give just once will keep on supporting the needy, over and over again.
Most people are daunted by the process of calculating Zakat, but it’s actually quite straightforward. It’s even more straightforward with our Zakat Calculator. But if you’d rather do it yourself, here’s a breakdown of how:
First, you need to know the accurate price of gold/silver today to work out the monetary value of Nisab. So, if the Nisab by gold standard is 87.48; and if the price of gold was £30 per gram; then you could work out the value of Nisab as follows: 30 x 87.48 = 2,624.40.
That means that if you have £2,624.40 or more in assets/savings you are eligible to pay Zakat. The amount you’ll have to pay is 2.5% of your total savings (after a year’s worth of living expenses , and provided you’ve had that amount for a full year.)
As per these prices, the Zakat you’d have to pay would be £65.61.
Please note that the calculation above is just an example of how to work out your Zakat, and you shouldn’t take it as an up-to-date representation of current gold prices. If you’re still unsure about how to calculate your Zakat or are worried you might get it wrong, please use our Zakat Calculator.
Akhuwat
Akhuwat provides Qarz-e-Hasna to underprivileged families so they can help themselves out of poverty. Our borrowers/recipients repay only the capital amount, without interest. With one of the highest repayment rates in the world, Akhuwat continues to transform lives one Qarz-e-Hasna at a time. Akhuwat is registered in the UK with the Charities Commission (Registered Charity Number: 1136317).
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