87.48 gms Gold and 612.36 gms Silver, converts to about 2.8125 Oz Gold and 19.6875 Oz Silver. The Gold converts to about $775 USD and the Silver $91 USD. There is a huge disparity between the Gold and Silver Nisaab, so which should be used for calculating the Nisaab on Cash only. Could you please elaborate on the situation where a person has cash. Which Nisaab should He be using? I have read somewhere that the Nisaab should be the lower of the two, however, as I have mentioned in my question, there is a great deal of difference between a person who has $775 USD and $91 USD. If we look at the Australian equivalent, $1435 AUD and $168 AUD. A person with only $175 AUD in total savings after one year is a very poor person in Australia, and probably most parts of the world. My question again is that if we apply the lower amount on cash, then this person should be paying Zakaat, and more to the point, He would not be able to receive Zakaat monies.
The Fuqahaa (jurists) have studied that in the event of a disparity between the value of gold and silver, the lower of the two values will be used to calculate the Nisaab of Zakaat, in the interest of the poor and needy. (Shaami vol.3 pg.229; Imdadiyyah)
and Allah Ta’ala Knows Best
Mufti Ebrahim Desai