I want to pay my zakat but I forgot the date on which I became the owner of nisab. What should I do in this case?
Answer:
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
In such a case, you should apply your mind and try to remember the date (according to Arabic calendar) on which you become the owner of nisab. If you feel that most probably it must have been a particular date, then that particular date will be considered the day on which you became the owner of nisab.
If you do not have any such feeling regarding a particular date, you should yourself specify a date (according to Arabic calendar). Thereafter, that date will be considered the day on which you became the owner of nisab.
(Ahsanul Fatawa: 4/265; Zakat ke Masail ka Encyclopedia: pg. 112)
If you know the date according to the Gregorian calendar but not according to the Arabic calendar, you may use a software (available on some websites) that converts Gregorian dates to Arabic dates.
And Allah knows best.
Mufti Faizal Riza
7/9/2011