Question:
Assalamualykum,
If my total asset worth for Zakat is £5,000 and I have £9,250 student finance debt, would I pay no zakat as I am in overall negative equity? Or are we not able to include student finance debt in our calculations and so would pay zakat on £5,000
Jazakallah for your time
Answer:
You can deduct that amount that you will be paying towards the student loan over the coming year. So for example, if you will be paying £300 in the coming year towards your student loan, then you can deduct £300 from your total asset of £5000 and zakat will be payable on the remainder £4700. If you intend to pay back the entire loan in the coming year, the total £9250 be deductible.
Answered by:
Ifta Research Fellow
Checked & Approved by:
Mufti Abdul Rahman Mangera
Mufti Zubair Patel