How to Calculate Zakat on Gold in Pakistan (Tola, Karat and Nisab)

Step 1: Weigh your gold

Write down the weight of each piece. Jewellers in Pakistan use the tola, while receipts and international prices often use grams. One tola is 11.6638 grams, so 10 grams is about 0.857 tola. Smaller weights are given in masha and ratti: 1 tola is 12 masha and 1 masha is 8 ratti. Separate your pieces by karat, because each karat has a different value.

Step 2: Price it at today’s rate

Sarafa associations publish a daily rate per tola for 24 karat gold. Lower karats are valued in proportion to their purity: 22k is about 91.6% gold, 21k is 87.5% and 18k is 75%. To find the value of 22k jewellery, multiply the 24k rate by 22 and divide by 24, then multiply by the weight in tola. For zakat, use the value of the gold itself; making charges are not part of it.

Step 3: Add your other zakatable wealth

• Cash at home and in bank accounts and wallets
• Silver
• Business stock at its current sale value
• Money lent to others that you expect to get back
• Shares, funds and savings certificates at current value

Then subtract debts that are due now, such as unpaid bills or an instalment due. Your home, car, furniture and clothes for personal use are not included.

Step 4: Check the nisab

The nisab is 7.5 tola of gold or 52.5 tola of silver. Our zakat calculator follows the commonly followed Hanafi approach: if all your zakatable wealth is gold only, the gold nisab of 7.5 tola applies. If you own gold together with any cash, silver, stock or other wealth, the silver nisab of 52.5 tola is used, because the combined wealth is measured against the lower silver threshold. As silver is much cheaper, this means many more people reach the nisab.

Example: a woman owns 5 tola of 22k gold and nothing else. Five tola is below 7.5 tola, so zakat is not due on this calculation. If she also keeps Rs 50,000 in cash, her total wealth is compared with the silver nisab, and zakat is likely due on the total.

Step 5: Take 2.5%

If your net zakatable wealth is at or above the nisab, and it has completed a lunar year, zakat is 2.5% of the total. Many people choose one date each year, often in Ramadan, and calculate on that day. The Hijri date converter helps you find the same Islamic date each year.

Jewellery you wear

Scholars differ on zakat on jewellery that is worn regularly. In the Hanafi school, followed by most people in Pakistan, zakat is due on gold and silver jewellery whether it is worn or kept. Follow the view of the scholar you trust.

Common mistakes

• Valuing 22k or 21k jewellery at the 24k rate.
• Adding making charges or stones to the gold value.
• Using last year’s gold rate.
• Forgetting cash and bank balances when gold is below 7.5 tola.
• Counting gold that belongs to a different family member as your own.

A full worked example

Suppose a family member owns 8 tola of 22k gold, keeps Rs 1,50,000 in a bank account and Rs 20,000 at home, and has a Rs 30,000 bill due. If the 24k rate is Rs X per tola, the 22k rate is X × 22 ÷ 24, and the gold is worth 8 times that. Add the cash and bank balance, subtract the bill, and compare the total with the value of 52.5 tola of silver. If the total is higher, multiply it by 2.5% to get the zakat due. The zakat calculator does each of these steps and shows a breakdown.

Paying zakat

Zakat is paid to the poor and needy and to the other groups named in the Quran. Many people give to relatives in need, students, widows or trusted welfare organisations. It is best to give it soon after it becomes due and to keep a simple note of what you paid and to whom, so you know your zakat for the year is complete.

Bank zakat deduction

Banks in Pakistan deduct zakat on 1st Ramadan from savings accounts above the nisab set by the government, unless the account holder has submitted a zakat exemption declaration. If zakat was deducted by the bank, take it into account so the same money is not counted twice.

This guide and our calculator help you do the sums. For your own situation, especially loans, business assets or shared property, ask a qualified scholar.

More guides