Britain’s National Zakat Foundation (NZF) treats coin currencies such as bitcoin “like cash,” so they are zakatable at market value on your zakat date, and any crypto bought to resell is always zakatable. Staking rewards add to those holdings once you control them. An NFT is zakatable only if it was bought to resell; one kept for enjoyment is generally not.
Reviewed by Hafiz Maqsood Ahmed.
Scholars disagree about whether cryptocurrency is permissible at all: Egypt’s Dar al-Ifta and a 2026 fatwa from Darul Uloom Karachi reject it, while Malaysia’s Securities Commission Shariah council permits trading on registered exchanges, as our analysis of crypto and Islamic finance sets out. For those who hold it, the zakat rules below are the published positions of named bodies; The Halal Times does not issue rulings.
Coins and tokens
NZF’s guidance on zakat on cryptocurrencies, approved by its scholar Mufti Amjad in August 2023, makes three distinctions:
- “Any cryptocurrency or token purchased to resell will always be Zakatable,” valued at market price on the zakat date.
- Coin currencies such as bitcoin “are like cash” and are zakatable even if they were not bought to resell.
- For other tokens, the treatment “will depend on the nature of the token,” for example whether it represents a share in a business or a right to use a service.
Staking rewards
Staking locks up coins to help run a blockchain in return for new coins. No major standard setter has issued a dedicated ruling on staking rewards. Musaffa, a Shariah screening company, says most modern scholars treat staking rewards as income, with accumulated rewards zakatable at market value.
Applying NZF’s principles, the practical approach is:
- Count staked coins at their market value on your zakat date, if they are coins NZF treats as cash or held for resale.
- Add rewards you have received and can withdraw.
- Leave out rewards that are promised but not yet credited or accessible, in line with the general rule that zakat applies to wealth you own and control.
- Pay 2.5 percent of the total, with your other zakatable wealth, if it exceeds the nisab.
Coins locked for an unbonding period are still owned, so they remain in the count. Whether staking itself is permissible is a separate question that holders can put to a qualified scholar.
NFTs
For collectibles, including NFTs, the deciding factor is intention. “Zakat is only due on a collectible if it is bought with the intention to resell in the short-term,” the Islamic finance site Islamic Finance Guru says in its guide to art, NFTs and collectibles. An NFT held “for aesthetic reasons and as a pastime” is not zakatable, it says, and some NFTs may not be Shariah-compliant in the first place.
| Asset | Zakat treatment |
|---|---|
| Bitcoin and similar coin currencies | Zakatable at market value, like cash |
| Any token bought to resell | Zakatable at market value |
| Utility or business tokens held long term | Depends on the nature of the token |
| Staking rewards received and accessible | Added to holdings at market value |
| NFT bought to flip | Zakatable at market value |
| NFT kept for personal enjoyment | Generally not zakatable |
Valuing crypto on your zakat date
Crypto prices move sharply, so use the price on your chosen zakat date and record it. Our guide to zakat explains how to set a zakat date and the nisab.
Tools that track crypto zakat are reviewed in our guide to zakat-compliant crypto tax software.
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