The ruling on zakat and sacrifice for an insolvent debtor

Question

Zayd had previously owed ten thousand, and the creditors filed a lawsuit against him with the government, but Zayd had no such property as could be given to the creditors according to the government’s law; for this reason the government’s law was lifted from Zayd. Now Zayd has come to own a certain sum, namely five thousand, but this sum is not sufficient to repay the creditors: if he gives some money to one creditor, another creditor harasses him, and Zayd does not have enough money to pay them all.

Answer

If, according to the government’s law, some creditor is unable to recover his debt, Zayd has not been released [from it] according to the Shari‘a; rather, it is fard upon Zayd to repay it as far as he is able. And as long as there is not an amount of the nisab in excess of the debt, zakat will not become fard.

Source: Fatawa Mahmudiyya

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