Answered by Mufti Yusuf Mullan
I”m not entirely sure what I have to pay Zakat on. I got married in February and I received money which we have as savings and I also received a lot of gold. Do I have to pay Zakat on this even though I haven”t had it for a year?
In the name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful. May his abundant blessings be showered on his beloved prophet, the best of creation.
In the payment of zakat being obligatory, the passing of a whole year upon this money and gold you received is not a condition, if you have a set date in which you calculate your zakat.
The date comes into effect exactly one lunar year from the day in which you first became possessor of the minimum zakat-payable amount nisab’ (612.36g silver or its monetary equivalent in cash, gold, or merchandise bought with the intention to sell) For instance, if your routine has always been to offer zakat on the first of Ramadan, then along-side your other zakat-payable assets, this gold and money you recently received will also be calculated. You will need to pay 2.5% on behalf of the newly acquired wealth also.
If before receiving these gifts, you never possessed the minimum amount mentioned above (612.36g silver or its monetary equivalent), then it will be one lunar year from the day you received the above, that zakat will be payable on you.
Whatever remains from the monthly income you are receiving will be calculated on the day of zakat payment (once every year, as outlined above). Fluctuations which occur in between the year are of no consideration.
[for further details, see: http://webpages.marshall.edu/~laher1/zakatFiqh.html]
And Allah knows best.
Yusuf Mullan