The Treasury’s account books (Diwans) consist of two main divisions. The first one deals with the Treasury’s revenues and the funds owed to it. The second deals with the expenditure and the funds which the Treasury is liable to pay to the rightful owners.
The Revenues division
This includes the following Diwans according to the type of funds.
The Diwan of Booties (Fai’) and Kharaj
This Diwan would be the place where the records of the State’s revenues are kept and recorded. These funds would be the general booties for which all Muslims would be entitled. This Diwan would also include all the revenues from taxes, which the Muslims could in some cases be liable to pay, in case the revenues are not sufficient to cover the expenditures due on the Treasury. These taxes could be due as recompense for the State’s employees, or as service for the common interest and affairs of all the Muslims. A special place within the treasury is assigned for the funds of the Diwan, without being mixed with other funds. This is because such funds are spent in looking after the Muslims affairs and in their common interests, according to the opinion and Ijthihad of the Khalifah.
The departments of the Diwan of booties and Kharaj, set up according to its revenues and funds due to it, consists of the following:-
a) The department of war booties (Al-ghana’im): This includes the war booties, spoils, booties and the fifth.
b) The Department of land tax (Kharaj)
c) The Department of Lands: This includes the lands conquered by force, the tithe lands (Ushriyyah), the Sawafi, the States properties, public property lands and the protected lands (Al-Hima).
d) The Department of head tax (Jizya)
e) The Department of Al-Fai’: This includes the records of the Sawafi revenues, the tithes, the fifth of the hidden treasures (Rikaz) and minerals, the revenues of the State’s rentals and of the State’s lands and buildings, or the Sawafi and the wealth which has no heir.
f) The Department of Taxes
The Diwan of Public Property
It is the Diwan where the funds of public properties are kept and recorded, in terms of research, exploration, mining, marketing, as well as all revenues and expenditure. A special place is reserved for the public properties funds within the Treasury, where these funds are not mixed with other funds, for they are the property of all the Muslims, The Khalifah would spend such funds according to what he deems in the interest of the Muslims following his own opinion and Ijtihad within the Shari’ah rules.
The Departments of the Diwan of public property are set up following its types of funds and according to the need to set them up. These would be as follows:-
a) The Department of oil and gas.
b) The Department of electricity.
c) The Department of minerals.
d) The Department of seas, rivers, lakes and springs.
e) The Department of forests and grazing lands.
f) The Department of protected lands (Al-Hima).
The Diwan of Sadaqat
It is the Diwan where the obligatory Zakat funds are kept and recorded. The various departments of this Diwan are set up following the type of the obligatory Zakat funds, and they are:
a) The Department of “monies and commercial goods” Zakat.
b) The Department of crop and fruit Zakat.
c) The Department of camels, beef, and sheep Zakat. The Zakat funds are kept in a separate place within the Treasury, and they are not mixed with any other type of fund. This is because Allah (swt) has restricted those entitled to Zakat in the eight categories, He (swt) mentioned in the Quran: He (swt) says:
“Verily the Sadaqat are (only) for the poor, needy, those employed upon it, those whose hearts are to be reconciled, slaves, debtors, those in the way of Allah (swt) and the wayfarers” [At- Tauba: 60]
It is therefore forbidden to allocate the Zakat funds to any other category.
The Expenditures’ Division
That was as far as the first Division was concerned. As far as the second Division which is related to the expenditure side and to the funds which are due on the Treasury, this includes all the expenditure of the following Diwans, Departments, Offices and eligible bodies:-
1) The Diwan of the Khilafah House
This includes:
a) Dar ul-Khilafah.
b) The consultants’ office.
c) The Delegated Assistant’s office.
d). The Executive Assistant’s office.
2) The Diwan of Government Administrations
a) The Amir of Jihad’s Department.
b) The Walis’ Department.
c) The Judges’ Department.
d) The Department of various government agencies, offices and related general utilities.
3) The Diwan of Grants
This would be the place where the records of whom the Khalifah deems eligible for funds, such as the poor the needy, the indebted, the wayfarers, the farmers, the industrialists and others, as well as those whom the Khalifah considers it to be in the common interest of the Muslims to give them funds. These three Diwans’ expenditure will be covered by the revenues from the Diwan of booties and Kharaj.
4) The Diwan of Jihad
This includes:
a) The Diwan of the Armed forces covering their establishment, formation, equipment and training.
b) The Department of armament.
c) The Department of weapons industry.
The expenditure of this Diwan would be covered by the revenues of the first Division of Diwans. So it would be funded by the revenues from the booties and the Kharaj, for this Diwan is part of the recoverable and irrecoverable liabilities of the Treasury. It would also be funded from the Hima (protected properties) revenues raised from public properties. It would also be funded from the revenues of the Diwan of Sadaqat, for it forms part of the eight categories mentioned in the verse:
“Verily the Sadaqat are (only) for the poor, needy, those employed upon it, those whose hearts are to be reconciled, slaves, debtors, those in the way of Allah (swt) and the wayfarers” [At- Tauba: 60]
5) The Diwan of the Sadaqat expenses
These are covered by the Diwan of Sadaqat revenues if funds were available.
6) The Diwan of the Public Property’s expenses
These are covered by the public property’s revenues, according to the Khalifah’s opinion and within the Shar’a rules.
7) The Diwan of Emergencies (natural disasters)
This includes all what the Muslims may suddenly face, such as earthquakes, floods, famines etc… Emergencies are covered by revenues from the Diwan of booties and Kharaj, and from revenues of the public property’s Diwan. If these two Diwans did not hold sufficient funds, funds would be raised from the Muslims.
8) The Diwan of the General Budgets, General Accounts and Control
The Diwan of the general (budget is responsible for the preparation of the future budget of the State, according to the Khalifah’s opinion, in terms of estimating the State’s revenues and expenditure, comparing the overall and real revenues and expenses with that budget, and monitoring the total revenues of the State and its real expenditure. This Diwan would be affiliated to the Dar ul- Khilafah.
9) The Diwan of General Accounting
This is in charge of controlling all the State’s funds, i.e. accounting its existing funds, its credits, revenues and expenditures, be it those already collected and those due for collection
10) The Diwan of Control
This takes charge of reviewing and checking all the balance sheets of the State’s funds and its administrations, making sure of the exact amount of the existing assets, expenses, revenues and expenditure. It also takes charge of accounting the officials in relation to the collection and spending of those funds. It also monitors and accounts all the Diwans, the State departments and employees regarding the administrative matters.
These are briefly and in general the Diwans of the Khilafah State’s finance. As for the evidence about their establishment, they are one of the administrative styles and means to carry out the action of. The Prophet (saw) , had dealt with the administration by himself and he appointed secretaries for it, whether in matters related to the finance or others. We said before, in the subject of the “First Established Diwan”, those whom the Prophet (saw) appointed as secretaries for the financial matters. Besides, the verses and the Ahadith which indicate the permissibility of the Anfal, the Ghana’im and Al Fai’ (booties and spoils) as well as the Jizya and the Kharaj, and which also indicate that they are a legitimate gain for the Muslims from the disbelievers, in addition to the verses and Ahadith which indicate the obligation of Zakat and to whom it should be allocated and which also indicate the public property, all this necessarily allows the setting up of administrative systems which would allow these funds to be collected, kept, recorded, counted and disposed of. These administrative styles would be a branch derived from the origin, thus they would be part of it and they would be part of the permitted (Mubah) actions. The Khalifah would be entitled to adopt them in which way he deems necessary to collect, control, safeguard, distribute and spend these funds. The setting up of the Diwans and their adoption took place in the time of the Khulafa’a ur-Rashidoon and this was witnessed by the Sahabah who did not object or disown such action.