Approvals from the agriculture directorate and other authorities in agricultural land transactions
People often say that "everything about agricultural land goes through the agriculture department". In fact the texts identify specific points where approval from the agriculture directorate, the minister or another body is required; everything else runs through the land registration department or the courts under the general rules. The office of lawyer Ali Barakat in Baghdad gathers those points here as they appear in the published texts.
Leasing state land to graduates
- Auction through the directorate: paragraph one of article 2 of Law No. 24 of 2013 provides for preparing agricultural land, fixing its locations and announcing it in a public auction among eligible persons for lease under State Property Sale and Lease Law No. 32 of 1986, through the agriculture directorate of the region or province.
- The directorate committee: article 4 forms a committee in the agriculture directorate, chaired by its representative with members from land registration, state property, water resources and the province, which examines lease and ownership requests, investigates beneficiaries' breaches, and assesses compensation when land is withdrawn or recovered.
- Minister's ratification: the committee's decisions are subject to the minister's ratification within fifteen days of their registration in the minister's office, under paragraph three of article 4.
- Grievance: article 6 allows an affected person to file a grievance against the minister's decision under article 5 or the committee's decision within thirty days of notification.
See reclaiming state agricultural land.
Minister's approval for transfer and assignment
- Transferring an acquired disposal right: paragraph three of article 7 allows the holder of a disposal right acquired under this law to transfer it to others after obtaining the minister's approval, provided the transferee undertakes to keep using the land for farming.
- A lessee's heirs: paragraph three of article 5, as replaced by Law No. 16 of 2024, allows the minister or a delegate to approve the heirs of a lessee who dies during the lease assigning the land to others if they cannot manage it; otherwise the contract is rescinded and the land withdrawn, with the heirs compensated for buildings and plantings at their assessed standing value.
Land distributed under agrarian reform
- Land distributed under articles 18 and 19 is registered in the recipient's name five years after receipt by decision of the council, and all distributed land is registered as held by tapu, under article 23 of the Agrarian Reform Law.
- If the recipient breaches obligations, a competent committee investigates and decides to cancel the distribution, and the decision becomes final only on ratification by the council, under article 25.
- Anyone who received or bought an orchard under article 17 must keep using it for agriculture, and its category may not be changed.
Water and wells
The authority here is not the agriculture directorate. Article 2 of the Water Well Drilling Instructions makes extraction of groundwater conditional on a licence from the General Authority for Groundwater, and article 4 requires the licence application to be filed with supporting documents, including a recent land registration deed. Law No. 16 of 2024 added to article 2 of Law No. 24 of 2013 a paragraph obliging the Ministry of Water Resources to provide a water share or a well licence for land leased under it. See well drilling and agricultural investment.
Court permission
Article 1208 of the Civil Code requires court permission, for a lawful justification, for the guardian of a person under incapacity to assign the ward's amiri land, and court permission for accepting an assignment on the ward's behalf where it benefits the ward. This is a judicial approval unrelated to the agriculture directorate.
Legal basis and sources
- Law No. 24 of 2013, articles 2 to 7 (Official Gazette, issue 4287 of 26/8/2013)
- Law No. 16 of 2024 amending Law No. 24 of 2013, articles 2 and 3 (Official Gazette, issue 4781 of 1/7/2024)
- Agrarian Reform Law No. 117 of 1970, articles 17, 23 and 25 (Official Gazette, issue 1884 of 30/5/1970)
- Water Well Drilling Instructions No. 1 of 2011, articles 2 and 4 (Official Gazette, issue 4201 of 1/8/2011)
- Civil Code No. 40 of 1951, article 1208 (Official Gazette, issue 3015 of 8/9/1951)
Frequently asked questions
Does the law require agriculture approval to sell any agricultural land?
The texts set out here require the minister's approval in specific cases, such as transferring a disposal right acquired under Law No. 24 of 2013, under paragraph three of article 7.
How long does the minister have to ratify a directorate committee decision?
Fifteen days from the decision's registration in the minister's office, under paragraph three of article 4.
What is the grievance period against a decision withdrawing land?
Thirty days from notification, under article 6.
Who issues an agricultural well licence?
The General Authority for Groundwater, under article 2 of the Well Drilling Instructions.
Related topics and articles
- 01Reclaiming state agricultural land and its transfer to graduates under Law No. 24 of 2013Leasing unoccupied state agricultural land and transferring the disposal right to agriculture and veterinary graduates under Law No. 24 of 2013 as amended by Law No. 16 of 2024 and its instructions, and reclaiming dead land under article 1186 of the Civil Code.
- 02Drilling artesian wells for agricultural projects in IraqWell licences under Water Well Drilling Instructions No. 1 of 2011: state ownership of groundwater, the application with a recent land registration deed, one-year licence term, spacing between wells, pump tests, user obligations, replacement wells, and pumping halts during scarcity.
- 03Selling and assigning the disposal right over amiri landHow the disposal right over amiri land is transferred between living persons under articles 1202 to 1208 of the Civil Code and article 203 of the Land Registration Law, the effect of unpaid consideration, boundaries versus area, and agrarian reform restrictions.
- 04The disposal right over amiri land: meaning, scope and transferWhat the disposal right over amiri land is under article 7 of the Land Registration Law and articles 1169 to 1199 of the Civil Code: what the holder may do, what is barred, and how it passes on death to descendants, parents and grandparents.
- 05The musataha contract in Iraqi law and its relation to amiri landThe musataha right under articles 1266 to 1270 of the Civil Code and articles 229 to 234 of the Land Registration Law: which land it arises on, the fifty-year term, rescission for unpaid rent, what happens to buildings at the end, and the difference with amiri land.