Most-asked question

Can zakaat be paid in advance or in instalments?

Q: Can zakaat be paid in advance or in instalments?

Mufti Online — Madrasah Ta'leemuddeen: “It is permissible to discharge the zakaat in advance, provided one has the nisaab. Hence, it is permissible for you to discharge your zakaat in Ramadhaan. However, your zakaat date will still remain 22nd Zul Hijjah and will not change to Ramadhaan.” Darul Ifta Ibn Masood: “Yes, it is permissible to discharge Zakaah in advance. However, it is imperative that you should keep a record of how much Zakaah you have discharged. Thereafter, on your Zakaah date, you should calculate how much is the actual Zakaah amount due for that particular year.” Darul Iftaa Mahmudiyyah: “It is permissible to pay Zakaat in advance with the following conditions: You own the Nisaab (threshold of Zakaat) amount or more.” Darul Ifta, Darul Uloom Azaadville: “If you have wealth equivalent to the value of the Nisaab it will be permissible to discharge Zakaat in advance.” Based on the fatawa linked below. Please read the sources and double-check with a Darul Ifta for your situation.

28 fatawa in the archive answer questions on this, from 4 South African Darul Iftas (Ask Imaam, Mufti Online, Azaadville, Ibn Masood). Below, each Darul Ifta’s answer is quoted word for word from the opening of one of its fatawa.

Based on the fatawa linked below. Please read the sources and double-check with a Darul Ifta for your situation.

Consult a mufti for your situation. Fatawa SA is a read-only archive and issues no rulings of its own.

What the Darul Iftas say

“It is permissible to discharge the zakaat in advance, provided one has the nisaab. Hence, it is permissible for you to discharge your zakaat in Ramadhaan. However, your zakaat date will still remain 22nd Zul Hijjah and will not change to Ramadhaan.”

Mufti Online — Discharging zakaat in advance · 17 Mar 2019

“Yes, it is permissible to discharge Zakaah in advance. However, it is imperative that you should keep a record of how much Zakaah you have discharged. Thereafter, on your Zakaah date, you should calculate how much is the actual Zakaah amount due for that particular year.”

Ibn Masood — Discharging Zakaah In Advance · 18 Aug 2026

“It is permissible to pay Zakaat in advance with the following conditions: You own the Nisaab (threshold of Zakaat) amount or more.”

Ask Imaam — Is it permissible to pay Zakaat in advance? · 19 Aug 2023

“If you have wealth equivalent to the value of the Nisaab it will be permissible to discharge Zakaat in advance.”

Azaadville — Discharging Zakaat In Advance · 8 Apr 2026

Quotes are the opening words of each answer as published; the full answer, its conditions and references are on the fatwa page. Answers depend on the exact details of each question.

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