The Law of Kharaj Lands

Al-Baladhuri transmits the views of the jurists on lands taken by force, such as al-Sawad and Syria. ¹

According to Abu Yusuf, if the imam divides the land among the victors, it becomes land of tithe (ushr) and its people are slaves. If he does not divide it, and returns it to the Muslims as Umar did with al-Sawad, then the people bear the jizya on their heads and the land bears the kharaj, and they are not slaves. This is the view of Abu Hanifa, and a similar view is transmitted from Sufyan al-Thawri. ¹

According to Malik and Ibn Abi Dhi'b, when an unbeliever embraces Islam his land remains in his possession, to cultivate it and pay its kharaj. They disagreed on combining kharaj and zakat: Abu Hanifa forbade it, while Malik, Ibn Abi Dhi'b, Sufyan, Ibn Abi Layla, and al-Awza'i permitted it. As for sowing the land more than once in a year, most scholars required only one kharaj, while Ibn Abi Layla and Ibn Abi Sabra demanded the kharaj of every crop. ¹

They nearly all agreed that whoever left land idle must be obliged to cultivate it or hand it to someone who will, and that the kharaj is waived in case of a disaster or flood. They disagreed about reviving dead land, and about irrigating it with the water of the kharaj or with rainwater. ¹

See the land tax and the poll tax.

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