Can the Bride’s Father Serve as the Groom’s Proxy (Wakil)?

Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick

Question

Can the bride’s father serve as the groom’s proxy (wakil) in the nikah if the groom is abroad? Is the nikah valid if the father conducts both offer and acceptance in the presence of two male witnesses?

Answer

In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate. May Allah alleviate our difficulties and guide us to what pleases Him. Amin.

No, the bride’s father cannot serve as the groom’s proxy (wakil) while also being the guardian (wali) of the bride in the same marriage agreement.

According to Ibn Naqib Misri, “Neither the guardian of the bride nor his agent may state the marriage offer for the guardian’s own marriage” and “No one may state both the proposal and its acceptance for one marriage, except the bride’s grandfather when marrying his son’s daughter to his other son’s son.” [Misri, ‘Umdat al-Salik ; Biqa‘i, Fayd Ilahi al-Malik]

This means that if the father wishes to act as the groom’s proxy, another individual must stand in as the guardian for the bride. An Islamic judge may assume this role if no one is available in the same degree of relation.

Therefore, the nikah would not be valid if the father conducts both the offer and acceptance.

I pray this is of benefit and that Allah guides us all.

[Shaykh] Irshaad Sedick
Checked and Approved by Shaykh Muhammad Abu Bakr Badhib

Shaykh Irshaad Sedick was raised in South Africa in a traditional Muslim family. He graduated from Dar al-Ulum al-Arabiyyah al-Islamiyyah in Strand, Western Cape, under the guidance of the late world-renowned scholar Shaykh Taha Karaan.

Shaykh Irshaad received Ijaza from many luminaries of the Islamic world, including Shaykh Taha Karaan, Mawlana Yusuf Karaan, and Mawlana Abdul Hafeez Makki, among others.

He is the author of the text “The Musnad of Ahmad ibn Hanbal: A Hujjah or not?” He has served as the Director of the Discover Islam Centre and Al Jeem Foundation. For the last five years till present, he has served as the Khatib of Masjid Ar-Rashideen, Mowbray, Cape Town.

Shaykh Irshaad has thirteen years of teaching experience at some of the leading Islamic institutes in Cape Town). He is currently building an Islamic online learning and media platform called ‘Isnad Academy’ and has completed his Master’s degree in the study of Islam at the University of Johannesburg. He has a keen interest in healthy living and fitness.