Zakat calculator for the UK and Europe
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BarakahFlow does not issue fatwa, and nothing on this page is financial, tax or legal advice. These pages set out scholarly positions and name where each one comes from. Nisab values shown here are derived from international spot prices and are indicative only. Where your local Zakat authority publishes its own figure, theirs is the one that governs. For a binding ruling on your own circumstances, speak to a qualified scholar. See our Terms of Service.
British and European Muslim institutions have largely settled on the silver threshold — a low bar, deliberately chosen so that more people are captured by the obligation rather than fewer. It is the position the National Zakat Foundation uses, and it is the BarakahFlow default here.
| Weight convention | AAOIFI / majority convention (85 g gold, 595 g silver) |
|---|---|
| Operative threshold | Silver |
| Follows the positions of | National Zakat Foundation UK · ECFR · Islamic Relief |
| Currencies | Pound sterling (GBP); Euro (EUR) |
The UK and Europe use the AAOIFI and majority weight conversion of 85 grams of gold and 595 grams of silver, with the silver threshold applied as the operative one. The National Zakat Foundation, the European Council for Fatwa and Research, and the major British Muslim charities converge on this.
The threshold, in GBP
Nisab is a weight of metal, so its value in your currency moves with the market. The figures below are refreshed from live international spot prices when the page loads.
Gram weights are fixed and are stated above. The currency values are indicative: they are rendered into the page as static figures and upgraded to live spot prices when the price feed responds.
Why British institutions chose silver
The silver threshold sits far below the gold one, as the live figures above show. Which you pick decides whether a large part of the British Muslim community is liable at all.
The National Zakat Foundation and most UK charities take silver, on the reasoning that Zakat is a right of the poor and the cautious side of a genuine scholarly difference is the side that brings more wealth into the obligation. The same logic AAOIFI applies.
If you follow the Maliki, Shafi’i or Hanbali school personally, the gold threshold is your school’s position and BarakahFlow will apply it. The app shows you both figures so you can see exactly what the choice costs.
ISAs, pensions and the assets Britain actually holds
A cash ISA is cash and is zakatable in full. A stocks and shares ISA depends on why it is held: shares bought to resell count at full market value, while for long-term holdings scholars differ between full market value, which is the cautious position and BarakahFlow’s default, and counting only the company’s own zakatable share, for which the National Zakat Foundation publishes a 25% proxy.
Workplace and personal pensions are harder. A defined contribution pot you cannot access until fifty-five is not wealth you can presently dispose of, and scholars differ on whether that changes its status. BarakahFlow’s treatment is to count restricted retirement savings net of the tax and penalty that would apply on access — a mainstream contemporary position, not a ruling. A defined benefit pension, having no capital value you own, is generally excluded until it pays out.
Help to Buy and Lifetime ISA balances are accessible with a penalty and are treated the same way as other restricted savings.
Two currencies, one threshold
Sterling and the euro both float against the dollar, and gold and silver are priced in dollars. Your nisab therefore moves on two axes at once — the metal price, and your currency against the dollar. A threshold figure someone published eight months ago can be materially wrong today.
BarakahFlow prices from live international spot rates in your own currency and timestamps what it used, so the figure you paid on is reproducible later.
A worked example in pounds
- Current account and cash ISA
- £12,000
- Stocks and shares ISA at market value
- £8,000
- Gold jewellery worn regularly
- Exempt
- Less: card balances and bills due within the year
- − £2,500
- Zakatable base
- £17,500
- Zakat due at 2.5%
- £438
The silver threshold applied here is roughly £1,106. Had the gold threshold of about £10,135 been used instead, this person would still be liable — but someone with £5,000 in total would owe £125 on silver and nothing at all on gold. That is the choice British institutions have made on the community’s behalf, and it is worth understanding rather than inheriting.
UK & Europe Zakat, commonly asked
What is the nisab in the UK right now?
On the silver threshold of 595 grams, roughly £1,106 at the metal prices current at the time of writing. The gold threshold of 85 grams is roughly £10,135.
The National Zakat Foundation publishes an updated figure and most UK Muslims follow it. BarakahFlow prices the same thresholds from live spot rates in sterling, refreshing while the calculator is open.
Do I pay Zakat on my ISA?
A cash ISA is cash and counts in full. A stocks and shares ISA is where it gets more interesting, and it depends on why you hold the shares.
Shares bought in order to resell are trade goods and count at full market value, which we understand to be agreed across the schools. For shares held long term, there is a genuine scholarly difference. BarakahFlow’s default is full market value, which is the cautious position and the one AMJA and Monzer Kahf take. The alternative is to count only the share of the company that is itself zakatable: the National Zakat Foundation publishes a 25% proxy for UK holdings, the Fiqh Council of North America uses 30%. The app offers those and names the source of whichever you pick.
The ISA wrapper is a tax status under British law and has no bearing on the Sharia position either way. Money that is yours is zakatable whatever wrapper it sits in.
Is my UK pension zakatable?
It depends on the type and on which position you follow. A defined contribution pot is wealth you own but cannot yet access, and scholars differ on how that affects its status.
BarakahFlow counts restricted retirement savings net of the penalty and tax that access would attract, which is a mainstream contemporary treatment. A defined benefit pension is generally excluded until it starts paying, since you own no capital sum. Neither of these is a fatwa — if the amounts are significant, ask a scholar.
Can I deduct my UK mortgage from my Zakat?
Not the balance. No school permits netting an entire housing debt against your savings, and calculators that allow it produce figures that are simply wrong.
Only principal actually falling due within your Zakat year can reduce the base, and BarakahFlow deducts nothing from a mortgage by default. You can add one month or twelve lunar months of principal if you hold that view. The interest element is never deductible.
Which school should I follow in the UK?
Most British Muslims follow the school of their family’s background — commonly Hanafi for those with South Asian heritage, Maliki for many with North and West African heritage, Shafi’i for many with East African, Levantine or Southeast Asian heritage.
The institutional default in the UK is closer to the AAOIFI position, which is why BarakahFlow starts there and then asks. If you know your school, set it and the app applies that school’s rules throughout.
Compare with another method
The same holdings produce different figures under different schools and conventions. Seeing the comparison is the point.
Get the number that actually applies to you.
BarakahFlow applies your school, policy choices, region, currency and Hawl; itemizes cash, metals, shares, pensions, business inventory, receivables, property income, coins, stablecoins, tokens and NFTs; separates short- and long-term debts; and shows an auditable calculation record.
BarakahFlow states scholarly positions and attributes them. It does not issue fatwa. For a binding ruling on your own circumstances, speak to a qualified scholar.
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