Jizyah

Compensation. Poll tax levied on non-Muslims as a form of tribute and in exchange for an exemption from military service, based on Quran 9:29. Sometimes conceived as a graduated head tax in which the rich paid more than the poor and the penniless were exempt; other times, it was strictly applied. If a Muslim leader did not provide his subjects with adequate security, he was obliged to refund the tax; Salah al-Din (Saladin) returned the money to his Christian subjects when he was compelled to withdraw his army from Syria. There is no consensus about its applicability in the modern world.

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