𝗪𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻'𝘀 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗳𝗶𝘁𝘀 (266)

Is Khul’ a Type of Divorce (طلاق) or Termination (فسخ)? The majority of scholars classify khul' as a form of طلاق (divorce), while Imam Ahmad follows the opinion of Ibn Abbas and Ikrimah, viewing it as فسخ (termination). This latter perspective appears to be more accurate, and Allah knows best. This is because when Allah mentioned divorce twice in the verse {الطلاق مرتان}, khul' was referenced immediately afterward, followed by the mention of the third divorce with {فَإِنْ طَلَّقَهَا فَلَا تَحِلُّ لَهُ مِنْ بَعْدُ حَتَّى تَنْكِحَ زَوْجًا غَيْره}. This suggests that Allah did not count khul' as a divorce; otherwise, the total would amount to four divorces, which is invalid by consensus. Implication of this differing: If a man has already issued two divorces and a khul’ occurs, can they remarry? If we consider khul’ a type of divorce, they cannot remarry unless she first marries and then divorces another man. However, if we consider it a type of termination, he can remarry her and would have one divorce remaining. Once khul’ takes place, the marriage contract is annulled, meaning the husband has no right to رجعة (revocation of divorce). Therefore, a new marriage contract is necessary if they wish to reunite. There is no عِدَّة (waiting period) after khul’, unless the wife is pregnant—pregnant women must observe عِدَّة whatever the case. However, non-pregnant women must ensure that they are not pregnant by waiting one menstrual cycle (استبراء) before entering into another marriage. Ibnul Qayyim rahimahullah said: «والذي يدل على أنه ليس بطلاق أنه تعالى رتب على الطلاق بعد الدخول ثلاثة أحكام كلها منتفية عن الخلع: أحدها: أن الزوج أحق بالرجعة فيه. الثاني: أنه محسوب من الثلاث فلا تحل بعد استيفاء العدد إلا بعد دخول زوج وإصابة. الثالث: أن العدة ثلاثة قروء، وقد ثبت بالنص والإجماع أنه لا رجعة في الخلع» What indicates that it is not a divorce is that Allāh, Almighty, has stipulated three rulings for divorce after consummation, all of which are not applicable to khul‘. The first is that the husband has the right to return to her (الرجعة). The second is that it counts as one of the three divorces, so after completing the number, she can only remarry after the consummation of marriage with another man. The third is that the waiting period (العدة) is three menstrual cycles. It has been established by both textual evidence and consensus that there is no return in khul‘." [Nayl Al-Awtar] @womensbenefits