Question No. 3634 10 September 2026 Official answer by Master Ali Saei (Abdullah Meshkat) verified Content level: Intermediate

What Is the Rationale for Zakat on Livestock, and Why Is There No Obligatory Zakat on Cars?

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Dear questioner, Master Ali Saei

Tracking code: #Q-3634

Subject: Zakat
Peace be upon you, respected teacher.

In the legal manuals, the categories of wealth on which zakat is obligatory are listed as nine items. Three of these are livestock: cattle, sheep, and camels.

1. What is the rationale for zakat on these items?
2. Given that cars are bought, sold, and used far more widely today than livestock, why do the legal manuals of the eminent jurists not mention obligatory zakat on cars?
َّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحيمِ

Subject category: Jurisprudence and Rulings

The essence and first answer at a glance (60-word summary)

The rationale for zakat on livestock—cattle, sheep, and camels—is not easy to explain. In general, however, zakat is an act of worship that purifies and increases one’s wealth. These animals benefit not only their owners in material ways but society as well. Wealth that does not fall into one of the nine prescribed categories is subject to khums, not obligatory zakat.

Answer by Master Ali Saei (Abdullah Meshkat)

Teacher and researcher in the intellectual tradition of wisdom and the Ahl al-Bayt | Soroush Bamdadān Cultural Center

It is difficult to discern the wisdom behind zakat on cattle, sheep and camels. In general, zakat is an act of worship that purifies wealth and causes it to grow. Perhaps we can say, with some confidence, that cattle, sheep and camels on which zakat has been paid benefit not only their owners in this world but the wider community as well. The meat of such animals may serve as medicine and healing, promoting people’s well-being. It may even contribute to economic prosperity. Wealth on which zakat has not been paid, by contrast, may carry a kind of hidden illness within it (Allah knows best).

As for items outside the nine specified categories, it is true that zakat is not obligatory on them, but they are subject to khums.

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What Is the Rationale for Zakat on Livestock, and Why Is There No Obligatory Zakat on Cars?

The essence and first answer at a glance (60-word summary)

Answer by Master Ali Saei (Abdullah Meshkat)

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