The contract of sharecropping between the landowner and the worker
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Fatwa number ( 5955 )
Q: We have a custom in Jordan where a person owns land, as proven by a deed, and he farms it with partners. The landowner does not pay the partner for any losses, such as plowing or seeds, but he takes one-third of the harvest. Is this permissible, and what is the ruling in Islam regarding this, especially when the partner incurs a loss, and in some cases the land does not yield enough to cover the loss, while in other cases it is harvested and equals the amount of 10 sacks of grain, and the landowner (the owner) comes and takes 3 sacks from it, and so on.
A: The contract of sharecropping between the landowner and the worker is a permissible contract, provided that the produce from the land is shared between them, with the worker receiving a quarter, a third, or a half, for example, and the remainder belonging to the landowner, whether the seeds, fertilizer, plowing, watering, and other work are done by the worker or partly by the worker and partly by the landowner; based on what was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim and the compilers of the Sunan, from Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both):Bulugh al-Maram 7:156 , and from him also,
Also, it was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim . And by Muslim , Abu Dawud , and al-Nasa'i : Mishkat al-Masabih 2972. In it is evidence that the work and the money spent on the crops were from the worker, who were the Jews , and that naming the worker's share suffices in place of naming the landowner's share.
And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
Q: We have a custom in Jordan where a person owns land, as proven by a deed, and he farms it with partners. The landowner does not pay the partner for any losses, such as plowing or seeds, but he takes one-third of the harvest. Is this permissible, and what is the ruling in Islam regarding this, especially when the partner incurs a loss, and in some cases the land does not yield enough to cover the loss, while in other cases it is harvested and equals the amount of 10 sacks of grain, and the landowner (the owner) comes and takes 3 sacks from it, and so on.
A: The contract of sharecropping between the landowner and the worker is a permissible contract, provided that the produce from the land is shared between them, with the worker receiving a quarter, a third, or a half, for example, and the remainder belonging to the landowner, whether the seeds, fertilizer, plowing, watering, and other work are done by the worker or partly by the worker and partly by the landowner; based on what was narrated by al-Bukhari and Muslim and the compilers of the Sunan, from Ibn 'Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both):
Allah's Messenger (ﷺ) had agreed with the people of Khaibar to give (to the Muslim authority) half what it produced of fruits or crops
أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم عامل أهل خيبر بشطر ما يخرج منها من تمر أو زرعAlso,
That the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), when he conquered Khaybar, the Jews asked him to let them stay there on the condition that they would handle its work, and they would have half of the fruit, so he said to them: I will let you stay there on that condition as long as we wish
أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم، لما ظهر على خيبر سألته اليهود أن يقرهم بها على أن يكفوه عملها، ولهم نصف الثمرة، فقال لهم: نقركم بها على ذلك ما شئناthat God’s Messenger handed over to the Jews of Khaibar the palm-trees and the land of Khaibar on condition that they should employ what belonged to them in working on them and that he should have half the produce
أن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم دفع إلى يهود خيبر نخل خيبر وأرضها، على أن يعملوها من أموالهم، ولرسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم شطر ثمرهاAnd success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and his Companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.