Zakat is one of the essential pillars of Islam. It is not permissible to use any trickery or deceit (*heelah*—cheating methods) when calculating, collecting, or giving Zakat. Property or livestock must not be split apart or joined together with the intention of reducing the amount of Zakat or avoiding it altogether.
Wrong Methods of Deceit:
Deceit by the Owner (to reduce Zakat):
For example, if a person owns 40 sheep kept separately in two different places, combining them would make 1 sheep obligatory as Zakat. However, when the Zakat collector arrives, the owner must not falsely claim, “I only have 20 sheep here, and the rest are elsewhere,” by showing them separately to reduce or avoid Zakat.
Similarly, if two people individually own 101 sheep and 101 sheep (where each owes 1 sheep, totaling 2 sheep in Zakat), they must not combine them to show 202 sheep when the collector arrives (since up to 200 sheep, the Zakat is still only 2 sheep) in order to tricky-reduce their Zakat burden.
Deceit by the Zakat Collector (to collect more):
The Zakat collector must not forcibly combine sheep that are genuinely separate in order to impose a higher Zakat burden on the owner.
Evidence from Hadith (Sahih al-Bukhari: 1450) This instruction of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is recorded in the letter containing Zakat laws written by Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) to Anas (may Allah be pleased with him):
**وَلَا يُجْمَعُ بَيْنَ مُتَفَرِّقٍ، وَلَا يُفَرَّقُ بَيْنَ مُجْتَمِعٍ، خَشْيَةَ الصَّدَقَةِ**
*”Neither should the dispersed (property) be brought together, nor should the combined (property) be divided, out of fear of Zakat (i.e., to reduce or increase the Zakat amount).”*
If there is a legitimate need to divide or separate assets, it must be reported to the government or authorities before the Zakat collector arrives; raising it only at the time of collection is wrong. Complete details of all assets are already with the government, so one should not foolishly think they have tricked the government by deceiving the collector.
Zakat is an act of worship (ibadah) performed for Allah. Even if one attempts to deceive human beings in this matter, one can never deceive Allah.
Both parties—the one who collects Zakat and the one who gives Zakat—must follow the Islamic laws completely, with honesty and without any trickery.
In any religious duty, attempting to evade one’s obligation through deceitful methods is strictly prohibited in Islam.