Revoking divorce granted in return for providing for the children

Fatwa no. 179 All Praise is due to Allah Alone.The Permanent Committee perused the request submitted to it from the Secretariat General of the Council of Senior Scholars with no. 2/877 on 2/6/1392 A.H with respect to the divorce of a woman. Attached to the request is a letter no. 736 sent by His Eminence, judge of Divorce and Marriage Court, on 1/6/1392 A.H., which includes his demand to peruse (Part No. 19; Page No. 406) document no. 188 which was issued on 28/3/1392 A.H. with respect to divorcing the mentioned woman. He is asking whether it is permissible for her ex-husband to take her back in marriage or not.After studying the mentioned document, the Committee found that it states: In the presence of the husband and his wife before His Eminence, the judge of Divorce and Marriage Court, the husband divorced her saying, 'I hereby divorce my wife. She is lawful for other than me and unlawful for me. She has waived her right to Nafaqah (obligatory financial support) to provide for my daughter and what is in her womb in case she is pregnant.' Upon informing the wife of this, she denied that she had waived her right to Nafaqah to provide for her daughter and what may be in her womb in case she is pregnant. His Eminence, the judge, confirmed the divorce.

After examining the document and the attached papers, the Committee answered: Since the husband claimed that divorcing his wife was in return for her acceptance to provide for the daughter and what might be in her womb if she is pregnant while she denied this, the husband's claim is considered an acceptance of his wife's demand for Khul` (divorce at the request of the wife in return for compensation to the husband) and hence she hereby receives an irrevocable divorce. In Al-Muqni`, Ibn Qudamah said, "If a husband says to his wife, 'I grant you divorce in return for one thousand,' then she denies this or says, 'You grant divorce to other than me,' she receives an irrevocable divorce as the judge bases his decision on what she says and she takes an oath that she is truthful in compensating him." It was written in "Al-Hashiyah": 'she receives an irrevocable divorce,' means 'as a result of the husband's confirmation of what is said.'" Since Khul` is considered an irrevocable divorce, if he has not divorced his (Part No. 19; Page No. 407) wife for the third time, it is permissible for him to take her back in marriage after concluding a new marriage contract and fulfilling its conditions provided that she gives her consent. He should also pay her a new Mahr (mandatory gift to a bride from her groom). May Allah grant us success. May peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.