🏛️ Polygyny: the law · #40

In the UK, may a second marriage be held in the mosque only, without civil registration?

A religious second marriage does not change the legal reality: it is not recognised as a civil marriage. If it is conducted as a purportedly valid marriage, it can raise issues of bigamy. A second wife in this situation has no civil protection as a wife, including on divorce, division of property, intestate inheritance and immigration status. Many mosques in the West now refuse to conduct the contract for men who are already married for this reason. The duty to be just and not to wrong women requires us to weigh this harm seriously. Get advice from a local lawyer and see Muslim minorities in the West.

Sources

Offences Against the Person Act 1861 (UK), s.57Surah an-Nisa' 4:3

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This answer is general reference, not a fatwa. For your situation, consult the religious affairs office, a Syarie lawyer or your state Syariah Court.

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