Zakat on Consignment and Others' Goods in My Shop

Short answer: Zakat on consignment goods is due on the owner (consignor), not the shopkeeper who merely holds them for sale. The shopkeeper only pays zakat on his own capital and profits from his own merchandise. Details: The obligation of zakat is tied to ownership of wealth. The evidence from the Qur'an and Sahih hadith establishes that zakat is a right upon the owner of property. In consignment arrangements, the shopkeeper does not own the goods; he is an agent entrusted with selling them. Therefore, the zakat liability falls upon the owner of the goods, provided the goods reach the nisab and a lunar year passes. The shopkeeper should not include the consignment value in his own zakat calculation. If the shopkeeper also owns goods mixed with consignment goods, he must distinguish his own property and pay zakat on that separately. Evidence: 1. Sahih al-Bukhari 1454 (P1) shows that zakat is obligatory on every Muslim's property, implying ownership as the basis. 2. Sahih al-Bukhari 1451 (P2) indicates that for joint property, the combined zakat is paid by the owners, affirming that zakat follows ownership. 3. Sahih al-Bukhari 1450 (P11) forbids splitting or combining property to avoid or reduce zakat, emphasizing that ownership boundaries matter. Note: The provided evidence does not directly mention consignment, so the ruling is derived from general principles of ownership in zakat. For complex cases involving mixed assets or unclear ownership, consult a knowledgeable scholar.