How to calculate zakat in Pakistan: nisab, what counts and a worked example
Work it out with the Zakat calculator →
Zakat is 2.5% (one-fortieth) of your net zakatable wealth. It becomes due when your cash, savings, gold, silver and trade goods, minus debts due now, are worth at least the nisab (the value of 52.5 tola of silver or 7.5 tola of gold) and a lunar year has passed. Your home, personal car and things you use are left out.
What the nisab is
Nisab is the minimum wealth on which zakat is due. It has two measures: 52.5 tola (612.36 g) of silver, or 7.5 tola (87.48 g) of gold. To get it in rupees, multiply by today’s rate per tola from your local sarafa market.
Silver is much cheaper than gold, so the silver nisab is far lower. When your wealth is a mix of things, such as cash, a bank balance and some gold, most scholars in Pakistan advise using the silver nisab. Our zakat calculator selects it by default.
For deduction by banks, the government notifies its own figure each year. For Zakat year 1446-47 AH it was Rs 503,529, applied to the deduction on 1 Ramadan 1447 (February 2026).
What counts
- Cash kept at home, in any currency.
- Bank balances: savings, current and fixed deposit accounts.
- Gold and silver: coins, bars and jewellery. In the Hanafi school, jewellery you wear is included. Count the metal at today’s value, not the making charges. Use the gold calculator to turn weight into rupees.
- Trade goods: shop stock, and any property or plot bought with the intention of selling it, at current market value.
- Receivables: money you have lent and expect to get back.
- Savings certificates and investments: National Savings certificates, prize bonds, shares and mutual funds, at current value.
What doesn’t count
- The home you live in.
- Your personal car or motorcycle, furniture, clothes and household goods.
- Business equipment and machinery (stock held for sale does count).
- Rental property itself; rent you have saved is part of your cash.
Deducting debts
Subtract debts and bills you must pay now: money borrowed from friends, supplier dues, a committee instalment that has fallen due, unpaid bills. Scholars differ on long-term loans such as a home or car loan; many say to deduct only the instalments due in the next twelve months. If this applies to you, ask a qualified scholar.
The lunar year
Zakat is due once a full Islamic (lunar) year has passed on wealth at or above the nisab. A lunar year is about 11 days shorter than a solar one. The simple way is to fix one Hijri date, such as 1 Ramadan, and calculate on that day every year, on what you own that day.
A worked example
Say a household owns the following on 1 Ramadan. The gold and silver prices are examples only; use today’s rates for your own sum.
| Item | Value |
|---|---|
| Cash at home | Rs 100,000 |
| Bank savings account | Rs 900,000 |
| 3 tola gold at Rs 450,000 a tola | Rs 1,350,000 |
| Regular Income Certificates | Rs 500,000 |
| Loan to a brother (expected back) | Rs 200,000 |
| Total zakatable assets | Rs 3,050,000 |
| Less: debts due now | Rs 150,000 |
| Net wealth | Rs 2,900,000 |
With silver at Rs 9,600 a tola, the nisab is 52.5 × 9,600 = Rs 504,000. Net wealth is above it, so zakat is 2.5% × 2,900,000 = Rs 72,500.
The household had not filed a CZ-50, so on 1 Ramadan the bank deducted 2.5% × 900,000 = Rs 22,500 from the savings account. They still need to pay the remaining Rs 50,000 themselves.
Note that on the gold nisab alone (7.5 × 450,000 = Rs 3,375,000) the same wealth would look below nisab. That is why the choice matters when your wealth is mixed.
Bank deduction on 1 Ramadan
Under the Zakat and Ushr Ordinance 1980, banks deduct zakat on 1 Ramadan from savings, profit-and-loss-sharing and similar accounts and deposit it in the Central Zakat Account at the State Bank. No deduction is made if the balance that day is below the nisab notified by the government: Rs 503,529 in 2026. The figure for next year will come in a new notification shortly before Ramadan.
CDNS says zakat is deducted at source from Defence and Special Savings Certificates under the rules, while Behbood, Regular Income and Short Term certificates and the Pensioners’ Benefit Account are exempt from deduction. Exempt only means CDNS does not deduct it: you still owe zakat on that money yourself. See our National Savings schemes comparison for more.
How to file the CZ-50 exemption declaration
Section 1(3)(a) of the Ordinance says zakat is not deducted compulsorily from a person who files a declaration that they are a Muslim, a follower of a recognised fiqh (named in the declaration), and that their faith and fiqh do not oblige them to pay zakat in the manner the Ordinance lays down.
- Get the CZ-50 format from your bank or institution (many banks also publish it on their websites).
- Fill in your name, CNIC number, account numbers and your fiqh.
- Swear it before an oath commissioner, notary public or magistrate, in front of two witnesses who identify you. Ask your bank whether it must be on stamp paper.
- Submit the original or an attested copy to each bank at least 30 days before 1 Ramadan, and keep the receipt. Each bank needs its own declaration.
A CZ-50 is not a way out of zakat. It means you will calculate your zakat yourself and give it to those entitled to it.
Common mistakes
- Counting gold at its purchase price including making charges. Use today’s metal value.
- Treating the bank deduction as your full zakat and forgetting cash, gold and National Savings certificates.
- Counting the bank deduction twice. Subtract what was already deducted from your total.
- Deducting the whole of a home loan, which can wipe out zakat that is actually due.
- Changing your calculation date every year. Keep one Hijri date.
This guide follows the mainstream Hanafi view common in Pakistan and is not a fatwa. For complex cases, such as business partnerships, long-term debts, provident funds or inherited wealth, please consult a qualified scholar.
Frequently asked questions
What is the nisab for zakat in Pakistan?
Nisab is 52.5 tola (612.36 g) of silver or 7.5 tola (87.48 g) of gold. Multiply by today’s rate per tola to get it in rupees. For bank deduction, the government notifies its own rupee figure each year: Rs 503,529 for the 2026 deduction on 1 Ramadan 1447.
Should I use the silver or the gold nisab?
When your wealth is a mix of cash, savings and gold, most scholars in Pakistan advise the silver nisab, because it is lower and so more people pay. If all you own is gold and nothing else zakatable, many scholars apply the gold nisab. Ask a scholar if you are unsure.
Is zakat due on gold jewellery that is worn?
In the Hanafi school, followed by most people in Pakistan, yes: gold and silver jewellery is zakatable whether it is worn or kept. Count the metal’s value, not the making charges. Other schools differ.
My bank deducted zakat on 1 Ramadan. Do I still owe more?
Possibly. The bank only takes 2.5% of that account’s balance on that day. Your total zakat covers all your zakatable wealth, so work out the full amount and subtract what the bank already deducted.
How do I stop the bank deducting zakat?
File a zakat declaration (CZ-50) with each bank, sworn before an oath commissioner, notary public or magistrate in front of two witnesses, at least 30 days before 1 Ramadan. You then pay zakat yourself.
Is zakat due on a plot I bought as an investment?
A plot bought with the intention of selling it is treated as trade goods, so its current market value is zakatable. A plot for building your own home is not. If your intention was unclear or changed, ask a scholar.
Calculators for this guide
- Zakat calculatorCalculate zakat on gold, silver, cash, bank savings and business stock, with nisab checked against today's silver or gold price.
- Gold calculatorConvert gold between tola, gram, masha and ratti and work out its value at today’s rate for 24, 22, 21 or 18 karat.
Sources
- Ministry of Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety: notification of nisab Rs 503,529 for Zakat year 1446-47 AH and deduction date (16 Feb 2026)
- State Bank of Pakistan: BPRD Circular Letter No. 03 of 2026, deduction of zakat at source from savings and PLS accounts
- Federal Shariat Court: Shariat Petition No. 24-I of 1990 (quotes section 1(3)(a) of the Zakat and Ushr Ordinance 1980 on the exemption declaration)
- CDNS scheme pages: zakat treatment of National Savings certificates and accounts
- Nisab of 52.5 tola silver / 7.5 tola gold (classical Hanafi measures, 1 tola = 11.664 g)
This guide explains the rules for general information. It is not official, legal or tax advice. Rules change, so check the official source or a qualified professional before acting. See how we check our information.