Chapter on the Zakāt of Merchandise

Zakāt is obligatory on all goods held for trade, whatever their nature, once their market value reaches the nisab in either gold or silver; the appraisal is made according to whichever of the two will be of greater benefit to the poor and the needy.

If the nisab is complete at both the beginning and the end of the lunar year, any deficiency that arises in between does not cancel the obligation.

The value of merchandise is added to any gold or silver one possesses, and—according to Abū Ḥanīfah—gold may likewise be combined with silver on the basis of value until the nisab is attained. Abū Yūsuf and Muḥammad, however, maintain that gold is not combined with silver by value, but only by their respective weight.