Question # 493: My wife passed away last year leaving behind me and two sons (one married and one unmarried) and two married daughters. She had some gold jewelry with her. I am in possession of it now. How do I pay Zakat on it? Although I want to pay zakat, we do not want to sell the jewelry because I want to gift it to my son during his wedding?

bismi-llahi r-raḥmani r-raḥīm,

Assalamu ‘laikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh,

All praise and thanks are due to Allah (سبحانه و تعالى), and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger (صلى الله عليه و سلم).

Dear questioner,

First of all, we implore Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) to help us serve His cause and render our work for His sake.

Shorter Answer: The following points are noteworthy with respect to your situation:

  • The wealth of the deceased should immediately pass on to the inheritors and it is disliked (makrooh) to delay or postpone the distribution among the legal heirs.
  • The value of the jewelry for distribution should now be worked out according to its value at the time of division, and not its value at the time of the wife’s death.
  • The inheritance shares will be as follows: Husband: 1/4 (25%), each of the two sons: 1/4 (25%), and each of the two daughters: 1/8 (12.5%).
  • As for zakah in the case of each legal heirs, if the share of gold jewelry from inheritance reaches the nisab, whether by itself or after adding it to their other wealth, then it becomes liable for zakah after the lapse of a full lunar year from the death of the deceased.
  • In the case of women, except for the Hanafi scholars, according to the other three schools of thought, jewelry is not subject to Zakah as long as she uses them as an adornment. Nonetheless, it is better to pay Zakah to be on the safe side.
  • As for not selling jewelry, the son who is supposed to receive it on his wedding can pay the share of other legal heirs (after obtaining their consent) based on its current valuation, and also, the zakah need not be paid from the jewelry itself, rather it is sufficient to give the equivalent value each time according to the value of gold when the year is completed.

Long Answer: What a person leaves behind after he/she dies is to be divided among the heirs, after paying off one’s debts and carrying out the last wishes (wasiyyah). In fact, the wealth of the deceased should immediately pass on to the inheritors and it is disliked (makrooh) to delay or postpone the distribution of wealth among the legal heirs. Since the distribution has already been delayed, the value of the jewelry should be worked out according to its value at the time of division, and not its value at the time of the wife’s death for distribution among heirs. Also please refer to Question # 316: Delayed Distribution of Inheritance.

The division of jewelry, in this case, is one of the issues of al-faraa’id (division of inheritance) which is governed by two verses in the Book of Allah (سبحانه و تعالى):

  1. The verse in which Allah states the inheritance of the husband: “…If they had children, you get one-fourth of what they leave…” (Soorah an-Nisa’a, 4:12) This verse allocates to the husband one-fourth of the estate if they have children.
  1. The verse in which Allah states the inheritance of the children if there are both males and females: “Allah commands you as regard your children’s (inheritance): to the male, a portion equal to that of two females” (Soorah an-Nisa’a, 4:11)

Based on this, the estate is to be divided as follows:

  • The husband gets one-fourth (25%) of the estate.
  • The rest is given to the sons and daughters, with the male getting a share equal to that of two females, i.e., each of the two sons will get 1/4 (25%), and each of the two daughters will get 1/8 (12.5%).

Zakah is not due on gold unless it reaches the nisab (minimum threshold), which is 85 grams.

Therefore, in the case of each legal heirs, if their share of gold jewelry from inheritance reaches the nisab, whether by itself or after adding it to their other wealth, then it becomes liable for zakah after the lapse of a full lunar year from the death of the deceased. If it does not reach the nisab then no zakah is due.  However, in the case of women, the scholars differed as to whether zakah is due on gold that is prepared for use (jewelry). Please refer to Question # 491: Zakat on Jewelry and Ornaments for details.

Lastly, as for not selling jewelry, the son who is supposed to receive it on his wedding can pay the share of other legal heirs (after obtaining their consent) based on its current valuation, and also, the zakah need not be paid from the jewelry itself, rather it is sufficient to give the equivalent value each time according to the value of gold when the year is completed.

(The shorter version of the above answer has been verified and approved by Shaykh Ibrahim Zidan)

Allahu A’lam (Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) knows best) and all Perfections belong to Allah, and all mistakes belong to me alone. May Allah (سبحانه و تعالى) forgive me, Ameen.

Wassalaam