The waiting period (iddah) after divorce or death
Why a wife must wait before remarrying, and how long the wait is for a divorced, widowed, pregnant, or never-consummated wife.
After a divorce, or after her husband dies, a wife waits for a set time before she can marry someone else. This waiting time is called the iddah. It exists so it is clear whether she is expecting a baby, which protects everyone's lineage.
How long the wait lasts is different for different situations - a scholar helps a family work out exactly what applies to them.
Iddah is the period of waiting a wife must observe after a divorce or her husband's death, so that the effect of the previous marriage is fully ended. It safeguards lineage, and once it is complete the woman is free to remarry.
Iddah becomes obligatory on a woman for three reasons: divorce, annulment of marriage, or the death of her husband.
| Situation | Length of iddah |
|---|---|
| Divorced, and she menstruates (revocable or irrevocable divorce) | Three complete menstrual cycles. If she was divorced during a menstruation, that menstruation does not count towards it. |
| Divorced, and she does not menstruate | Three lunar months. |
| Divorced, and she is pregnant | Until she gives birth. |
| Divorced, and the marriage was never consummated | No iddah is obligatory - she may marry someone else immediately after the divorce. |
| Marriage annulled | The same as the iddah of divorce. |
| Widowed | Four months and ten days - whether the marriage was consummated or not, whether she menstruates or not, whether she is young or old, and whether she is Muslim or a Kitabi woman. |
| Widowed, and she is pregnant | Until she gives birth - even if that happens immediately after the husband's death, though marital relations remain forbidden during her postnatal bleeding. |
After an irrevocable divorce given during the husband's lifetime, the iddah remains an iddah of divorce even if he dies during it. After a revocable divorce given during his lifetime, the iddah instead becomes an iddah of death if he dies during it.
ʿIddah is the waiting period obligatory on a wife following ṭalāq or the death of her husband, so that the effect (ḥukm) of the prior nikāḥ is fully nullified. It safeguards lineage (nasab), and on its completion the woman is free to contract a new marriage.
ʿIddah becomes wājib on a woman for three causes: ṭalāq, faskh (annulment) of the nikāḥ, or the death of her husband.
| Case | Length of ʿiddah |
|---|---|
| Divorced (ṭalāq rajʿī or bāʾin), and she menstruates | Three complete ḥayḍ cycles. A ḥayḍ occurring during which the divorce itself was given does not count towards the three. |
| Divorced, and she does not menstruate | Three lunar months. |
| Divorced, and pregnant | Until delivery (waḍʿ al-ḥaml). |
| Ghayr madkhūlah bihā (marriage never consummated) at divorce | No ʿiddah is obligatory; she may contract a new nikāḥ immediately. |
| Faskh of the nikāḥ | The same as the ʿiddah of ṭalāq. |
| Widowed | Four months and ten days - regardless of whether the marriage was consummated, whether she menstruates, her age, or whether she is Muslim or Kitābiyyah. |
| Widowed, and pregnant | Until delivery - even where delivery follows immediately on the husband's death, though marital relations remain forbidden during nifās (postnatal bleeding). |
Following ṭalāq bāʾin given during the husband's lifetime, the ʿiddah remains an ʿiddat aṭ-ṭalāq even if he dies within it. Following ṭalāq rajʿī given during his lifetime, the ʿiddah converts to an ʿiddat al-wafāh (death) if he dies within it - since a rajʿī-divorced wife remains legally his wife until the ʿiddah lapses.
Terms on this page
Related
- Revocable and irrevocable divorce, and divorce before consummation The difference between a divorce the husband can take back and one he cannot, the two degrees of irrevocable divorce, and how many divorces count for a wife who was never consummated.
- Who you cannot marry: the other causes Beyond family and fosterage, marriage is also barred by combining certain women, by ownership, by religion, and by an existing marriage or waiting period.
- Taking the wife back during her waiting period (ruju') How a husband may take his wife back after a revocable divorce, while her waiting period is still running, without a new marriage contract.
- The kinds of divorce: ahsan, hasan, and bid'ah The prescribed (sunnah) methods of giving divorce - ahsan and hasan - set against the innovated (bid'ah) methods that go against them.