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The question

Can the state obligate merchants and doctors to pay a percentage of their wealth to the army and politicians, with these funds being a source of state financing, and what is the evidence for the permissibility of taking taxes or tolls (maks) from the subjects for public benefits?

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Source: FtawySummarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 20261 min readAlso available in العربية
The answer

The resources of the Muslim treasury (Bayt al-Mal) are numerous and diverse, both historically and in modern times, and include: natural resources discovered in state lands such as oil, gas, and minerals; taxes imposed on citizens for their benefit if the treasury is insufficient to meet public needs; all types of Zakat; one-fifth of what is extracted from the earth in the form of minerals; and the yields of Bayt al-Mal lands and properties, as well as the proceeds from trading with them. Al-Shatibi adduced evidence for the permissibility of taxes in cases of dire necessity, provided the ruler is just and his actions are legitimate.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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