Q: My question is regarding zakaat. I work in a retail clothing company and my boss tends to miss zakaat payments due to cash flow reasons. Alhamdulillah his business is good and intentions are clear. Due to the nature of his business, he needs to hold lots of physical stock of clothes. Someone advised him that he can pay clothes as zakaat if he has cash flow issues. My questions are:
1. Can he pay his zakaat in clothes instead of cash?
2. If yes, can he clear off his OLD STOCK, and at what value - the value at the time of production, the value at the time of purchase or the sales value?