What Happens When a Husband Goes Missing?
Answered by Shaykh Irshaad Sedick
Question
If a husband has left and disappeared, abandoning the marriage without expressing a desire for divorce, what are the applicable rules for the wife? How long is she expected to wait?
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Merciful and Compassionate. May Allah alleviate our difficulties and guide us to what pleases Him. Amin.
According to the Shafi‘i School’s predominant view, a woman seeking to remarry must first receive confirmation of her husband’s death or the issuance of a divorce.
This is Imam Shafi‘i’s final position (qawl jadid). [Ramli, Nihayat al-Muhtaj (v. 7, p. 147-48); Nawawi, Rawdat al-Talibin (v. 6, p. 377)].
In contrast, Imam Shafi‘i’s earlier view (qawl qadim), also held by ‘Umar Ibn al-Khattab (Allah be pleased with him) and Imam Malik (Allah have mercy on him), stipulates that after her case is adjudicated, the woman must observe a waiting period (‘idda) of four years before being eligible to remarry. [Ibn ‘Abd al-Barr, Istidhkar (v. 6, p. 130); Nawawi, Rawdat al-Talibin (v. 6, p. 377)]
The Maliki Position
According to the Maliki School, if a woman’s husband is missing, she can seek a dissolution of her marriage by approaching the court of an Islamic country or a committee of religious individuals, including at least one Islamic law scholar. She must prove her marriage and establish her husband’s abandonment, and the court will make efforts to locate him.
If he remains missing after an exhaustive search, the court may ask her to wait for four years. After this period, if he does not return, the court can declare him deceased, allowing her to remarry after observing a waiting period (‘idda) of 4 months and 10 days.
However, if waiting for four years is impractical or may lead to sin, the court may dissolve the marriage one year after his disappearance. Similarly, if the husband leaves no maintenance, and it is impossible to obtain it from his wealth, the court can dissolve the marriage after one month without maintenance. In both cases, the woman observes a waiting period of three menstrual cycles.
There are variations in the reported waiting periods, with some sources suggesting four years followed by an ‘idda of four months and ten days. The Maliki jurist, Imam Dasuqi, notes that if the missing husband leaves maintenance, the court may grant four years for his return; otherwise, the woman can demand a separation immediately due to the lack of financial support.
This ruling is supported by other Maliki works, such as Sharh Minh al-Jalil ‘ala Mukhtasar al-Khalil and Sharh al-Saghir, as well as Imam Ashraf Ali al-Thanwi’s al-Hila al-Najiza.
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.
