Analysis & Features

In some cases, several Syrian laws have allowed people to convert the right of usufruct and disposal of Amiri lands into the right to own such properties, while in other cases, laws have permitted the state to recover Amiri lands. These instances raise questions over the origins of state ownership over Amiri lands and the legitimacy of this kind of ownership. 

On August 14, the Prime Ministry issued Decree No. 1312, which stipulates that fees for construction permits be paid in three instalments over a period of two years. Administrative units grant construction permits to land owners in accordance with certain laws and regulations.

The procedures and rulings for terrorism cases differ between Syria’s criminal courts and the Antiterrorism Court with regard to seizing and disposing of accused persons’ assets and real estate. The two courts also are granted different powers and provide various safeguards in trials. 

Property extortion cases are today one of the most common housing, land and property violations in areas controlled by the majority-Kurdish Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) and constitute the most significant share of cases in local courts. 

Syria’s Criminal Court may sentence accused persons and issue judgments to seize their properties in absentia, placing those properties under the control of administrative authorities.  The Criminal Court handles cases with a criminal nature, in which the penalty for convicted persons is over three years. The court must apply the principles of Criminal Procedure Law No. 112 of 1950. 

The Ministry of Local Administration has established a fund to cover all the expenses for the zoning of the Damascus Northern Entrance area. Damascus Cham Holding, a company affiliated with the Damascus governorate, would manage the fund.

The rules for inheritance and wills included in Law No. 59 of 1953, which was based on Islamic law, are far more comprehensive and detailed than similar rules provided in the personal status laws for the country’s remaining religious groups. The broad outlines of such rules are generally similar across religious groups, but differ in some details. Below […]

While there are different personal status laws particular to each religious sects, Syria's personal Status Law No. 59 of 1953, which is based on the Islamic Sharia, was until recently the sole regulator of inheritance and wills for most sects. 

In early July, President Assad issued Law No. 29 of 2022, converting university campuses into public institutions, known as general commissions, that are independent from a financial and administrative point of view.

Syrian women who lost their husbands during the decade-long conflict have found themselves at risk of losing their housing, land, and property rights.

Article 2 of Decree No. 40 of 2012, which addressed the removal of so-called unlicensed structures (structures built without proper licence), stipulated that such structures be removed if they had been constructed after the issuance of the 2012 decree. This measure would apply no matter the type, location, investment category or usage of an unlicensed structure in question, which would be demolished and the rubble subsequently removed at the expense of whomever had benefited from the structure. 

The Syrian Prime Ministry issued Notice No. 15/17/B on June 2 to “amend the instructions of the Land Classification Plans Guide and determine its production capabilities in order to obtain the required approval and undertake investments on lands located outside of zoning plans.”

Inheritance refers to any movable or immovable assets left behind by an individual after their death. Their heirs become entitled to this inheritance in accordance with certain rules, and after fulfilling the deceased person’s wills and any debts they owed. 

Endowments properties, particularly those located in opposition-held territory, are today the centre of much discussion about the most appropriate way to invest in them or build housing projects in their place.

Recently in Syria there has been an increased reliance on engineering reports issued by public safety committees to determine structural dangers of buildings, especially in areas affected by fighting during the conflict. Obtaining such reports has become a condition for displaced people who seek to return to their homes in some partially damaged neighbourhoods.

Alternative housing – which is housing granted as compensation for a demolished or expropriated home that was unregistered or built informally – is one of the most confusing concepts in Syrian law. Because there is no clear definition of alternative housing, different Syrian laws have addressed the concept in varying ways.

A new amnesty decree, Decree No. 7 of 2022, has brought back to the fore hypothetical questions regarding the fate of housing, land, and property rights for absentees, should they return home.

In Syria, pro forma marital status decisions, which are reflected on marriage documents, can have negative impacts on married women’s housing, land, and property rights.

Syria’s system of delimitation and census, as outlined in Decree No. 186 of 1926, remains in force for surveying zones that have not yet been entered into the Land Registry. As a part of the process, a land record is established for the properties located within a specified zone, with each property assigned a number and entered into the Land Registry under the names of the owners.

For a third consecutive time, the Damascus Governorate Council agreed on March 9 to delay imposing a tax on plots of land within the Marota City project that are slated for construction. The tax has been postponed for an additional year, ending in March 2023.