❀ Shar‘i Ruling on the Commencement of ʿIddah After Khulʿ ❀
✦ Fatwa by: Shaykh Abdul Wakeel Nasir ḥafiẓahullāh
❖ Question:
If a woman obtains khulʿ (divorce initiated by the wife) through a court and the judgment is issued today, but the municipal and other administrative paperwork takes a week or ten days to complete — from which date does her ʿiddah begin?
Is it from the day of the court’s decision or after the paperwork is finalized?
❖ Answer:
✔ ʿIddah Begins From the Day of the Court’s Verdict:
The ʿiddah starts on the day the court announces its decision of khulʿ — not when the administrative paperwork is finalized.
❖ Details on the Duration of ʿIddah:
✔ If the woman is not pregnant, the ʿiddah period after khulʿ is one menstrual cycle.
✔ If she is pregnant, the ʿiddah continues until the birth of the child.
✔ Paperwork Has No Bearing on ʿIddah:
Administrative procedures and documentation are a separate legal matter and have no effect on the Islamic commencement of ʿiddah.
❖ Summary:
✔ The ʿiddah after khulʿ begins from the day the court announces the decision,
✔ Not from the date when paperwork is completed.
