3,526. Adding a Fifth

Hilchos Maaser Sheini and Neta Revai 4:22

Let’s say that someone had second tithe in his silo and spent money getting it from his house into town, thereby increasing its price. In such a case, he should redeem it based on the price in the city, forfeiting the money he spent to transport it.

Hilchos Maaser Sheini and Neta Revai 5:1

If a man redeems his second tithe for himself – whether it’s from his own crops, or he inherited it or it was given to him untithed – he must add a fifth. Therefore, if it was worth four, he pays five.* This is based on Leviticus 27:31: “If a man redeems his tithes, he must add a fifth to it.”

*The fifth is a fifth of the total, not of the principal.