Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

If in a marriage the mehar is setup and is setup high say one lakh rupees and the person is not in a position to give that money as a whole, is there any amount that the person/ man has to give as kuffara or any kind of tax?
If yes then how is it determined?
If the lady forgives the amont then is he still suppose to give the tax?
Please explain.. 

(There may be some grammatical and spelling errors in the above statement. The forum does not change anything from questions, comments and statements received from our readers for circulation in confidentiality.)

Answer:

Can woman forgive mahr

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is no one (no idol, no person, no grave, no prophet, no imam, no dai, nobody!) worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad(saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Allah says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 4: And give the women (on marriage) their dower as a free gift; but if they of their own good pleasure remit any part of it to you , take it and enjoy it with right good cheer.

The determination and payment of the ‘mehr’ is an obligatory part of an Islamic Nikaah, and once the man has committed to give an ‘x’ amount of mehr to his wife, it would be an obligatory debt which he has to pay her.

There is no provision, or tax, or ‘kuffara’ (atonement) for the non-payment of the promised mehr! The only person in the world who can reduce the amount, or if she wishes, forgive the full amount, is the wife herself!

If the amount is too much for the husband to pay, he may humbly request his wife to reduce the original amount and accept a smaller amount; or if he is completely unable to pay, he may even politely and humbly request her to forgive him this debt. If the wife, without any coercion or force or manipulation whatsoever agrees to her husband’s request and reduces or forgives the amount, the husband will be deemed free of his debt.

But if for any reason, the wife insists or even suggests that the husband pay her the promised mehr, he must fear Allah, and pay her the amount agreed between themselves.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your Brother in Islam,

Burhan