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Q&A · Marriage & Divorce

Can a woman put conditions in the marriage contract, such as not being moved abroad or being allowed to study?

Yes. Allah commands, "O you who have believed, fulfil [all] contracts," and the Prophet ﷺ said: "The conditions most deserving to be fulfilled are those by which you make intercourse lawful." So conditions of clear benefit that do not contradict the Sharīʿah — that she not be relocated from her city, that she may complete her studies or keep her job, that she be given a separate residence — are binding, and if the husband breaks them she has the right to take the matter to a judge and seek annulment. A condition that contradicts the Sharīʿah is void, such as stipulating no maintenance, no intimacy, a fixed end-date for the marriage, or that he divorce his existing wife — the Prophet ﷺ said, "It is not lawful for a woman to ask for the divorce of her sister so as to empty her plate, for she will have only what is decreed for her" (agreed upon). Scholars differ over a condition that the husband not take a second wife: the Ḥanbalīs hold it valid and binding, giving her the right to annul if he breaks it, while the Ḥanafīs and Shāfiʿīs hold the condition void though the marriage itself remains valid.

Evidence — the daleel
Sahih al-Bukhari 2721 ṢaḥīḥSahih Muslim 1418 ṢaḥīḥSahih al-Bukhari 5152 ṢaḥīḥQuran 5:1
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Informational, not a personal fatwa. Consult a qualified scholar for rulings on your situation.

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