Answered by Shaykh Faraz Rabbani
I am a physician in-training, recently married alhamdulillah, and the stipend I am paid is insufficient to cover our living expenses. Over the past twelve months, I have owed between two and five thousand to family members, and it is likely I will remain in some degree of debt for the next 2 years. The positive balance in my bank account is essentially borrowed money for living expenses. Am I required to pay zakat?
Walaikum assalam wa rahmatullah,
I pray this finds you in the best of health and spirits.
Zakat is only due if one possesses a net zakatable amount above and beyond one’s debts and immediate (one-month) expenses after a zakat-year has passed since first possessing such an amount–with the details mentioned in related answers in the SunniPath Answers (http://qa.sunnipath.com). Thus, in your case, you would not appear to be responsible to pay zakat.
Faraz Rabbani