Islamic Manual

The rules of offer and acceptance

The wording, timing and setting that a proposal and its acceptance must satisfy for a nikah to be valid.

Offer (ijab) is the first person's words, and acceptance (qubul) is the other person's reply agreeing to it. For example: the man says, "I have married you," and the woman says, "I accept."

Rules for the offer and the acceptance

  1. The words must be said as if it has already happened: like "I have married you," not "I will marry you tomorrow."
  2. The words must be spoken (or written by someone far away, or signed by someone who cannot speak), not just done as an action. If a man hands over the mahr without saying any words of acceptance, that is not enough for a marriage.
  3. The answer must come right after the question, in the same sitting. If people get up, walk away, eat a full meal, or get busy with something else in between, they have to start over.
  4. The answer must match the offer. If the woman changes what is being agreed to, there is no marriage, except that she may accept a smaller mahr than offered, or he may accept paying more than she asked.
  5. The offer and acceptance cannot be about the future or depend on an "if": like "I will accept tomorrow" or "I accept if such-and-such happens."
  6. Both people must hear and understand each other's words.
  7. Everyone must be sure exactly who is marrying whom.
  8. The words used must clearly mean marriage: words like "I marry you" or "I have made you my wife." Words that do not mean this, like "I lend you" or "I entrust you," do not create a marriage.

Ijab (proposal) and qubul (acceptance) are the conversation and agreement by which a marriage is established, whether conducted by the man and woman themselves or by their guardians or agents. Whoever speaks first makes the ijab; the other party's agreement is the qubul.

Conditions for a valid offer and acceptance

  1. Both the offer and acceptance, or at least one of them, must be in the past tense, so it is understood the marriage has already taken place: for example, "I have married you" met with "I accept."
  2. Both must be spoken. If the offer and acceptance are carried out by an action instead of words (ta'ati) (such as a man saying "I have married you, and this is your mahr" while the woman silently takes the mahr), the marriage is not valid.
  3. Writing stands in for speech only when the writer is absent, not when present. A written proposal read out to two witnesses, followed by a verbal acceptance before those witnesses, is valid. A mute person may use understood gestures instead of words.
  4. Qubul must come only after ijab is fully stated: if the acceptance is spoken before the proposer finishes a sentence that changes the meaning (such as naming the mahr), it is not valid.
  5. Ijab and qubul must occur in the same sitting (majlis). Anything that signals turning away (standing up, other conversation, eating more than a bite, drinking, lying down, praying) breaks the sitting and both must be repeated. A short pause with no such interruption does not break it.
  6. Qubul must correspond to ijab. If the man proposes with one dowry and the woman replies accepting marriage but not that dowry, the nikah fails. It remains valid, though, if she accepts a lower dowry than he named, or he accepts paying more than she asked.
  7. Neither statement may refer to the future or be made conditional: "I will accept tomorrow" or "I accept if such-and-such happens" invalidates the nikah.
  8. Each party must actually hear and understand the other's words, or their written equivalent.
  9. Both the bride and groom must be clearly identified. The groom's presence is usually enough; the woman must either be present, or named together with her father's name before the contracting parties and witnesses.
  10. The proposal and acceptance must use words that explicitly denote marriage: 'nikah', 'tazwij', or a clear equivalent such as "I have made you my wife", or words that transfer ownership of a whole person outright, such as gift, charity, or sale, provided marriage is intended and understood by the witnesses. Words like lease, loan, will, trust or mortgage do not create a marriage, because they do not transfer full ownership.
Ḥarāmmust not do

Ijab and qubul carried out purely by action rather than by speech (ta'ati) do not establish a valid nikah.

Miscellaneous rulings on offer and acceptance
Situation Ruling
Marriage attributed to the woman's whole body, or to a part like the head or neck that customarily stands for the whole Valid
Marriage attributed to a part that does not stand for the whole, like a hand or foot Not valid
A man and woman jointly declare, meaning it to take effect now, that they are spouses, in front of witnesses Counts as ijab and qubul; the nikah is established
The same declaration, but only meant to report a marriage that never actually happened Does not establish a nikah
Ijab and qubul spoken under coercion, compulsion, or in jest The nikah is still established
Ijab and qubul spoken in a language other than Arabic Valid
The parties do not fully understand the meaning of the words used, but know these words establish a marriage Valid
An incorrect term is used (e.g. "Niqah" for "Nikah") because the speaker does not know better, or because it is common colloquial usage Valid
The same mistaken term used though the correct term is known and it is not common usage Not valid

Ijāb wa qubūl is the conversation and mutual agreement, whether between the two ʿāqids themselves or their walīs or wukalāʾ, by which the marital relationship is established. Whichever statement is spoken first, by either the man or the woman, is the ījāb; the other party's assenting reply is the qubūl.

Conditions for a valid ijab and qubul

  1. Both, or at least one, must be expressed in the past tense (māḍī), so that the wording indicates the contract has already been effected.
  2. Both must be verbal. If either statement is replaced by an action (taʿāṭī) (for instance, the man declaring the ijāb and the mahr but the woman merely accepting the mahr without verbal qubūl), the nikah does not take effect, since taʿāṭī does not stand for qubūl in nikah as it may in sale.
  3. Writing (kitābah) stands as the equivalent of speech only where the writer is ghāʾib (absent), not ḥāḍir (present). Where the ijāb is in the past tense, both the writing and the qubūl must be read out to the witnesses; where it is in the imperative, only the qubūl need be. A mute person's understood gesture (ishārah maʿhūdah) substitutes for speech.
  4. The qubūl must not be uttered until the ījāb is complete: meaning the proposer has finished speaking with no further intention of adding words that would alter the sense (as adding a mahr figure would).
  5. Ījāb and qubūl must occur within the same majlis. Any iʿrāḍ (turning away) between them (rising, engaging in unrelated speech, taking more than one mouthful of food, drinking, reclining, or occupying oneself with an act such as ṣalāh) severs the majlis and both must be renewed. Mere silence or delay with no such intervening act does not sever it. Where the ījāb is transmitted by letter, the qubūl must fall within the majlis in which the letter is read; if read in a different majlis from the one in which qubūl is given, it is invalid unless the letter is read again in that later majlis.
  6. Ījāb and qubūl performed while in motion, on foot or in a moving vehicle, fail for want of a unified majlis; performed aboard a stationary-relative-to-its-occupants moving boat, they are valid.
  7. The qubūl must correspond (muṭābaqah) to the ījāb in its terms. Divergence (for instance, accepting the marriage but rejecting the stated mahr) invalidates the contract; the exception is where the woman's qubūl names a lesser mahr than the man's ījāb, or the man's qubūl names a greater mahr than the woman's ījāb, either of which stands.
  8. Neither ījāb nor qubūl may be muḍāf ilā al-mustaqbal (referred to a future time) or muʿallaq (made contingent on a condition).
  9. Each ʿāqid must hear (samāʿ) and understand (fahm) the other's words, or their written equivalent.
  10. Both parties must be muʿayyan (specifically identified). The groom's presence in the majlis ordinarily suffices for his identification; if absent, he must be specified as the woman is. The woman is identified by her presence, or by her ism and her father's ism stated before the ʿāqidān and the shuhūd; where she bears two names, the better-known one suffices.
  11. The ījāb and qubūl must employ either the ṣarīḥ (explicit) terms nikāḥ or tazwīj, or an unambiguous synonym; or a kināʾī (implied) expression that effects immediate tamlīk of a complete entity (hibah, ṣadaqah, tamlīk, or sale), provided the speaker intends marriage, or qarīnah indicates it, and the shuhūd likewise understand this intent. Terms such as ijārah, ʿāriyah, waṣiyyah, amānah or rahn do not effect nikah, since none of them immediately vests tamlīk of a complete entity.
Ḥarāmmust not do

Taʿāṭī, carrying out the ījāb and qubūl of nikah by action rather than speech, does not establish a valid nikah, unlike in contracts of sale where taʿāṭī is generally sufficient.

Miscellaneous rulings on ijab and qubul
Situation Ruling
Nikah attributed to the whole body, or a part customarily standing for the whole (head, neck) Valid, since usage treats such parts as denoting the whole person
Nikah attributed to a part not customarily standing for the whole (hand, foot) Invalid
Man and woman mutually and presently declare themselves spouses before witnesses, intending to establish the marriage at that moment This declaration itself serves as ījāb wa qubūl
The same mutual declaration, intended only to report a nikah that was not in fact contracted Does not substitute for ījāb wa qubūl
Ījāb wa qubūl performed under ikrāh (coercion), compulsion, or hazl (jest) The nikah is nonetheless established; heartfelt consent (riḍā qalbī) is not a condition of the contract's formation
Ījāb wa qubūl performed in a language other than Arabic Valid
The ʿāqidān lack full comprehension of the words used, but know the words establish a marriage Valid
An incorrect term used through ignorance of the correct one, or because it has become common colloquial usage Valid
The same incorrect term used despite knowledge of the correct term and absence of common usage Invalid

Terms on this page

nikah

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