“No zakah is due on wealth until a lunar year has passed over it.” (1) Recorded by Ibn Majah. Moreover, if no period were specified, would it be due every day, every month, every week, or every ten years? A period must therefore be stipulated. If zakah were made obligatory every month, that would harm the owners of wealth; and if it were made obligatory every two years, it would harm those entitled to zakah.

A year is a period in which steady profit is generally realized, fruits come forth, and livestock generally increase. This is why it has been set at one year. Here, the year is according to the lunar calendar, as Allah the Exalted says:

“They ask you concerning the new moons. Say, ‘They are appointed times for mankind and for Hajj.’” … [al-Baqarah 2:189]

The author excluded certain things for which the completion of a full year is not required. They are:

“In cases other than produce subject to the tithe, except for the offspring of grazing livestock and the profit from trade …”

His statement, “in cases other than produce subject to the tithe”: this is the first exception. What is meant is what the land produces of grains and fruits. It is called produce subject to the tithe because a tenth, or half of a tenth, is obligatory on it. Thus, the passing of a year is not required for it. The evidence is the saying of Allah the Exalted:

“Give its due on the day of its harvest.” [al-An‘am 6:141]

Allah the Exalted commanded His servants to give the zakah of grains and fruits when they are harvested, at a time when the produce is readily available to them and it is easy for them to pay it before it reaches the storehouses. Thus, a person may cultivate the land, and the crop may reach maturity in four or six months, yet zakah becomes due on it.