Assalamu Alaikum, Please can u tell me what should I do regarding Zakat on 9carat gold. Do i weigh it with my other gold which is 18carat. or do as the shopowner did when weighing it last year which was weigh it separately ,and then halve the weight. ie. the weight was 30grm 9carat . so he said its equal to 15grm 18carat. Jazak allahu kheir .

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

What should be taken into account in calculating the Zakah for gold is what equals 85 grams of pure gold, so whoever possesses this Nisaab (the minimum amount liable for Zakah) by itself or by other money or tradable items added to it after possessing it for one full lunar year, then Zakah must be paid on it. However, it is known that 18 carat gold and 9 carat gold are not pure gold; rather, they contain a percentage of other metals.

Gold pillions are measured by carat, and the carat equals 1 out of 24 portions. Therefore, 24 carat gold is the pure gold. So, the 18 carat gold is made of 18 portions of gold and 6 portions of another metal. The same thing is said about 9 carat gold; it contains 9 portions of gold and 15 portions from other metals. Therefore, whoever has 18 carat gold or 9 carat gold, or else, then he should pay the Zakah on the pure gold only, and if the pure gold reaches 85 grams by itself or by other money or tradable items added to it, then one should pay Zakah on it based on its value on the day he is obliged to pay Zakah on it. It is possible to know the (weigh of) pure gold according to the following equation: pure gold equals (=) the weight of gold that one wants to pay Zakah on, multiplied (x) by the carat, divided (÷) by 24. If the result is 85 grams or more, then it has reached the Nisaab and if a whole lunar year elapses on it, then it is an obligation to pay Zakah on it. In which case you should multiply it on the price of the pure gold and then subtract from it 2.5%, which is the amount of Zakah that should be paid. Besides, the value of pure gold (24 carat) is the price that is published in the daily newspapers and it is known by the jewellers.

Finally, the following two matters should be noted:

1-    The weight of 30 grams of gold of 9 carat equals 11.25 grams of pure gold; which means that it did not reach the Nisaab (85 grams), and so, by itself, there is no Zakah on it.  

2-    The pure gold of 9 carat and 18 carat should be added together, and if the total reaches the Nisaab, then Zakah must be paid on it.

For more benefit on the Nisaab on gold and silver, please refer to Fataawa 81355, 81332 and 86629.

Allaah Knows best.