Husband's insufficient earnings are not excuse for divorce
Fatwa No: 194111

Question

salam,i would like to ask about my sister.i m elderbrother and my father was expired before 10 years,i treat my sister like my daughter and i fulfill all her demands since my her childhood,now in jan 2012 she was marries after three years of engegment,now after marriage we knew that they all not financial strong,and her husband not able to fulfill her requirements,as we are inancialy stable,she afraid no future with him,and he dout on her all the time as he has a complex that they are not financially strong and he tourcher her all the time,now my sister residing with us since last 5 months,her husband appologise for all that things they want to take her home,but my sister strongly refused she dont want to go with him as she think she has no future with him because he is not earning sufficient and they renting the house they are not able to pay rent regularly as well,they keep telling lie since begining that they are in good financial condition and he has good job and all that ,now she want divorce,so what we can do, and what is islam says about this,as her husband refused that ,what is girls right for divorse and what is allah says please guide us we are in trouble thanks.

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad, sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam, is His slave and Messenger.

If the husband beats his wife without her being recalcitrant, or that he beats her severely, leaving scars and marks on her body, then this is a harm that allows her to ask for divorce; and if the husband refuses to divorce her, she may take her case to the court so that the judge would oblige him to divorce her or that the judge himself would divorce her from him. She may as well ask her husband for Khul’ due to the harm he inflicts on her provided that she gives him back her dowry so that he would divorce her. The same applies if she hates him to a point that she fears not to fulfill his rights.

As regards the issue of fearing the future and him renting a house and not owning one, then this is not a legitimate excuse for her to reject him as a husband, as he is obliged only to provide her with a suitable accommodation according to his ability; as Allaah Says (what means): {Lodge them [in a section] of where you dwell out of your means.}[Quran 65:6]

For more benefit, please refer to Fataawa 86307and  89039.

Allaah Knows best.

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