Zakat, halal ETFs and halal mortgages, on Canadian numbers
Three tools that respect the fiqh and the numbers. Zakat on live Canadian nisab, a screened halal ETF explorer, and a halal mortgage comparison. Where scholars differ, the tools show you the choice instead of picking one for you. Educational, not a fatwa.
Start here
- Check if you owe zakatSee if your wealth is above the nisab, in Canadian dollars, and work out the 2.5%.
- Start a halal portfolioThree example portfolios built from screened ETFs, and what each costs in a TFSA, FHSA or RRSP.
- Finance a home without ribaCompare murabaha, musharaka and ijara providers with a regular mortgage.
What changed
Checked again on .
- Halal funds. Fees, fund sizes and listings checked again. Eight funds added: AMGR, AMEI and AMEM (Amana), MWIM (Invesco), SPWI and DJIW (Wahed), HBKU (HSBC sukuk) and AMAL (Saturna), plus the Mackenzie Shariah Global Equity Fund.
- Corrections. The iShares sukuk fund (SKUK) costs 0.40% and trades in Amsterdam and Zurich, not London. WSHR costs 0.56%. HSBC's funds are now called "Islamic Screened".
- Zakat. Gold and silver prices as of October 31, 2026. You can now pick the nisab weights: 87.48 g and 612.36 g, or 85 g and 595 g.
- Halal mortgages. Provider list checked again. Servus Credit Union, Canadian Halal Financial Corporation and Assiniboine Credit Union added. Canadian Islamic Wealth removed: it does not offer home financing.
- New guide. Your first halal portfolio in Canada: three example portfolios and what each one costs.
The tools
3 toolsZakat in Canadian dollars, current gold and silver nisab, RRSP and TFSA treatment, jewelry, and eligible debt deductions at 2.5%.
Halal ETF ExplorerEvery Shariah-compliant ETF a Canadian can buy. MERs, screening standards, CAD vs US listings, and what the fees cost per year.
Halal MortgageCompare Canadian halal home financing. Murabaha, diminishing Musharaka, and Ijara providers priced side by side, and how they compare with a conventional mortgage.
Guides
1 guideHalal finance in 60 seconds
- No riba. Islam forbids interest: a fixed extra amount charged for a loan. Halal products earn profit from trade, rent or shared ownership instead.
- No gharar and no maysir. A contract must not hide too much uncertainty, and gain must not come from pure chance, as in gambling.
- Only halal businesses. Halal investments avoid companies that earn from alcohol, pork, gambling or lending at interest.
- Zakat each lunar year. If your wealth stays above the nisab for a full lunar year (the hawl), you pay 2.5% of it as zakat.
- Halal investing. Screened stock funds are for growth. Sukuk are for steadier income. Purify any small income from non-halal sources.
- Halal home finance. The provider buys the home for you or with you. You pay it back through a fixed sale price, through rent, or by buying its share over time.
Rulings differ between scholars and schools. This is a short summary, not religious advice: confirm with a qualified scholar or your local mosque.
How halal finance works here
Islamic finance avoids riba (a fixed, guaranteed return charged for lending money), gharar (excessive uncertainty), and investment in prohibited industries.
Zakat
An annual 2.5% due on wealth held above the nisab: the value of 87.48 g of gold or 612.36 g of silver as Islamic Relief Canada counts it, or 85 g and 595 g as NZF Canada counts it. Our calculator lets you pick either weight, tracks live Canadian metal prices for the nisab, and lets you choose the lunar (2.5%) or solar (2.577%) year, with notes where the schools of thought differ on RRSPs, jewelry, and business assets.
Halal investing
Shariah-compliant ETFs screen out non-compliant sectors and interest-heavy balance sheets (AAOIFI, MSCI, FTSE or S&P rules), and purify incidental income. The explorer compares the ones Canadians can buy, in CAD and US listings, with the MER cost in dollars.
Halal home financing
Instead of an interest-bearing loan, providers use Murabaha (cost-plus sale), diminishing Musharaka (declining co-ownership), or Ijara (lease-to-own). The return is framed as profit or rent on a real asset, not interest. The comparison tool estimates a like-for-like monthly payment across providers.
These tools are educational and are not a fatwa or financial advice. Rulings differ between scholars and schools; confirm your specific situation with a qualified scholar and a licensed professional.
Glossary
- Riba
- Interest, or any fixed extra amount charged for lending money. Islam forbids it.
- Gharar
- Too much uncertainty or hidden risk in a contract, for example a sale where the item or its price is not clear.
- Maysir
- Gambling, or a gain that depends only on chance.
- Nisab
- The least wealth that makes zakat due. It is set by the value of a fixed weight of gold or silver.
- Hawl
- One full lunar year of holding wealth above the nisab. Zakat is due when it ends.
- Purification
- Giving to charity the small part of your income that came from non-halal sources, for example through a fund's holdings.
- Sukuk
- Certificates of part-ownership in real assets or a project. They pay from its profit or rent, not from interest. Often called Islamic bonds.
- Murabaha
- A cost-plus sale. The provider buys the item, then sells it to you at a higher price that you know at the start, paid over time.
- Diminishing musharaka
- A partnership in a home. You and the provider own it together. You buy its share bit by bit and pay rent on the part you do not own yet.
- Ijara
- A lease. The provider owns the asset and you pay rent. In lease-to-own home finance, the home becomes yours at the end.
- Checks that a company's business and finances follow Islamic rules: no forbidden business, and limits on debt and on interest income.
Get the annual update
Zakat nisab, contribution limits, and tax numbers change every year. Get a short note when they do, nothing else.