Alinma Bank says new zakat claim related to long-term leased assets

Alinma Bank said the additional Zakat claims of SAR 1.65 billion, requested by the Zakat Authority, are related to the bank's assets leased under long term contracts.

The bank has calculated Zakat on the return of leased assets, rather than on the value of the assets themselves, but the General Authority for Zakat and Tax (GAZT) has used the assets’ total value as basis for calculation, the bank said in a message to Argaam.

"We have filed an appeal with GAZT to revise the claim," said the bank, adding "The Appeals Committee had previously ruled that the returns, rather than original value, of long-term leased assets shall be used as basis for Zakat calculation."

Alinma Bank said "Saudi Arabia's financial institutions enjoy strong financial positions that will enable them to deal with such issues without impacting on their effectiveness and efficiency," the statement added.

Last week, the bank said it was urged to pay SAR 1.65 billion in additional Zakat claims covering the period of 2009-2015.