Islamic Ruling on Remarriage for a Woman After 13 Years of Her Husband’s Disappearance

(Based on: Fatāwā Muḥammadiyyah, Vol. 1, p. 759)

Question:​

A woman has been married for 36 years. Her husband has been missing for the last 13 years. Despite many efforts, his whereabouts are still unknown. He never fulfilled his marital responsibilities nor provided any financial support. Now, with grown-up children and rising expenses, she struggles to meet her basic needs. Can she remarry according to Islamic law for her sustenance and the upbringing of her children?

Answer:​

Al-ḥamdu lillāh, waṣ-ṣalātu was-salāmu ʿalā Rasūlillāh, Ammā baʿd:


If the details of the case are accurate and verified by the testimony of three trustworthy witnesses, the woman in question—after seeking formal approval from a qualified judicial authority (e.g., Family Court Judge in Multan)—is permitted to remarry after observing four months and ten days (ʿiddat of death). This remarriage would be fully in line with Islamic law and jurisprudence for the following two reasons:

Reason 1: Husband’s Prolonged Disappearance (13 Years)​

According to Islamic law, if a husband goes missing, the wife is required to wait for four years.
If no news is received during that time, she should observe the waiting period of a widow (ʿiddat al-wafāt): four months and ten days, and then she is free to remarry.


This is based on the ruling of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (RA):


"Any woman whose husband is missing and his whereabouts are unknown should wait for four years, then observe the ʿiddah of four months and ten days. After that, she is free to remarry."
(al-Muwaṭṭaʾ Imām Mālik, Bāb ʿIddat al-Marʾah allatī tafqid zawjahā, p. 209)


After 13 years of disappearance, the missing husband is Islamically treated as deceased.
This overrides the Hanafī opinion, which unreasonably extends the waiting period to 90 years, which is neither practical nor just.


Therefore, the ruling of ʿUmar (RA) is more applicable, balanced, and just in the modern context.

Reason 2: Failure to Provide Maintenance (Nafaqah)​

Providing financial support is a mandatory obligation upon the husband.


The Prophet ﷺ said:
"The best charity is that which leaves you self-sufficient. The upper hand is better than the lower hand. Begin (charity) with those under your care. A woman says: ‘Either provide for me or divorce me.’"
(Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī, Vol. 2, p. 806)


If the husband fails or refuses to provide for his wife, and she is unwilling to continue the marriage under such circumstances, Islam allows her to seek a judicial separation.

Scholarly Support:​

Ibn Ḥajar al-ʿAsqalānī explains:


"From the wife's plea 'Provide for me or divorce me', the majority of scholars derive that if the husband is unable to support, and the wife opts for separation, it should be granted."
(Fatḥ al-Bārī, Vol. 9, p. 416)


Sāʿīd ibn al-Musayyib said:


"If a man cannot support his wife, they should be separated."
(Sabil al-Salām, Vol. 3, p. 274)


ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (RA) instructed military commanders:


"Soldiers absent from their wives must either send provision or divorce them."
(Sabil al-Salām, Vol. 3, p. 326)


Amīr al-Ṣanʿānī concluded:


"A husband must do one of two things: either provide for his wife or release her via divorce."
(Sabil al-Salām, Vol. 3, p. 226)

Final Ruling:​

In light of:

• Prophetic guidance,
• Sayings of the Ṣaḥābah (RA),
• Fatāwā of Tābiʿīn and Fuqahā’,
• and the woman’s severe circumstances (13 years without husband or provision),

The woman is absolutely entitled to remarry under Islamic law, provided:

1. She obtains formal permission from the Family Court (or Islamic authority).
2. She observes four months and ten days ʿiddah.