🏡 Rights & responsibilities · #5
My husband doesn't pay maintenance. What can a wife do?
A wife can claim maintenance through the Syariah Court, and unpaid maintenance remains a debt owed by the husband.
The first step is to discuss it amicably or through counselling at the religious affairs office. If that fails, the wife can file a maintenance claim, including arrears. In the hadith of Hind, the Prophet ﷺ allowed a wife to take from a miserly husband's wealth what is sufficient for herself and her children, reasonably (ma'ruf). Failure to provide maintenance for a certain period can also be grounds for fasakh under state enactments. Refer to Procedure, Counselling and Talaq & divorce.
The first step is to discuss it amicably or through counselling at the religious affairs office. If that fails, the wife can file a maintenance claim, including arrears. In the hadith of Hind, the Prophet ﷺ allowed a wife to take from a miserly husband's wealth what is sufficient for herself and her children, reasonably (ma'ruf). Failure to provide maintenance for a certain period can also be grounds for fasakh under state enactments. Refer to Procedure, Counselling and Talaq & divorce.
Differences between the schools. The majority (Maliki, Shafi'i, Hanbali) regard unpaid maintenance as a debt even without a court order; the Hanafis originally treat it as a debt only once it has been fixed by a judge or agreed.
Sources
Sahih al-Bukhari 5364Sahih Muslim, Kitab al-AqdhiyahSurah at-Talaq 65:7State Islamic Family Law Enactment