On Whom is Qurbani Wajib? The Nisab of Qurbani in Islam
Every year, as Eid-ul-Adha gets closer, the same practical question comes up in a lot of households: Is Qurbani actually Wajib on me this year? Not everyone has to perform it — it depends on a specific wealth threshold (Nisab), and a lot of people get the rules around it mixed up with Zakat.
2. What Exactly is the Nisab for Qurbani?
It's the same threshold used for Zakat Nisab and Sadaqah al-Fitr — the value of 612.36 grams of pure silver (52.5 Tolas). If your extra wealth — cash, gold, silver, business stock, spare property not in daily use — adds up to that value or more, Qurbani is Wajib on you.
Example: if 612.36g of silver is currently worth $500, and you have $500 or more in savings, spare jewelry, or unused land beyond what you actually need day-to-day on the morning of Eid, you're obligated to do Qurbani.
💡 The Big Difference Between Zakat and Qurbani
A lot of people assume Qurbani works like Zakat — that the wealth needs to sit with you for a full lunar year (Hawl) first. That's not correct.
Key rule: Hawl doesn't apply to Qurbani at all. Even if you receive a bonus, inheritance, or cash gift that pushes you above Nisab on the morning of the 10th of Dhul Hijjah, Qurbani becomes Wajib on you for that year — as long as the wealth stays with you until the 12th.
📝 Common Questions on Qurbani Obligation
1. Is Qurbani Wajib on a wife if she has her own jewelry?
Yes. A husband and wife have separate financial identities in Fiqh. If the wife owns gold, silver, or cash equal to Nisab in her own name, Qurbani is Wajib on her individually — her husband doing his own Qurbani doesn't cover her.
2. Is one Qurbani enough for the whole family?
In the Hanafi school, Qurbani is an individual obligation, not a household one. If the father, mother, and an earning adult son each independently own the Nisab amount, each of them needs their own Qurbani — three separate goats, for instance, or three shares in a cow.
3. What counts as 'Basic Necessities' (Zaroorat-e-Asliya)?
Your home, the clothes you wear, your everyday car, your phone, and normal household furniture — these are excluded from the calculation. But a second unused plot of land, a spare car sitting unused, or cash you're just holding onto counts toward Nisab.
4. I have debts — do I still have to do Qurbani?
Subtract what you owe (debts due immediately) from your total assets first. If what's left still meets or exceeds 612.36g of silver in value, Qurbani is Wajib. If it falls below that, it isn't.
5. Is Qurbani Wajib on someone traveling (Musafir)?
No — in Hanafi Fiqh, a Shar'i traveler away from home during all three days of Eid-ul-Adha isn't obligated, regardless of how much wealth he has. But if he gets back home before sunset on the 12th, it becomes Wajib on him.
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