Islamic Fiqh > Marriage and family > Khul' (dissolution by compensation)
Khul': the woman repays the mahr (or more per a view) to dissolve the marriage; the hadith of Thabit ibn Qays, conditions and cases.
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Updated on 31 August 2026 at 3:55 AM
The khul' is the ending of the marriage obtained by the wife in exchange for a compensation paid to the husband. The Quran establishes it: "If you fear the two cannot keep within the limits of Allah, no blame upon them for what she gives in release" (al-Baqara 229), and: "If they give up something of their own accord, dispose of it in ease" (an-Nisa 4). The scholars recall the Ummah's agreement on its legitimacy; Ibn al-Qayyim notes that an isolated group denied it, against the text and the consensus.
The wife of Thabit ibn Qays came to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him): I find no fault in Thabit, neither in character nor in religion, but I fear becoming ungrateful toward Islam. The Prophet asked: will you give back his garden? She said: yes. Then accept the garden and divorce her with one divorce.al-Bukhari 4971
This was the first khul' of Islam. Habiba bint Sahl, also the wife of Thabit ibn Qays, went to the Prophet: "he no longer suits me", and the Prophet told Thabit: "take from her", and he did (al-Muwatta 1174).
The jurists open the khul' when the wife rejects her husband: character, appearance, religion, old age or weakness, to the point of fearing she cannot render his rights; she then offers a compensation to obtain the ending, and the husband may accept it without dispute among the scholars. Other situations are discussed among the schools according to the cause of the conflict.
It passes through an exchange of wording: the husband pronounces, the wife accepts, and both parties must be responsible and discerning. The compensation is all that the husband gave, by the scholars' agreement reported by Ibn Abd al-Barr; below or above that, the schools detail. The Hanafis list five wordings including "khala'tuki" and "divorce yourself for a thousand"; the Malikis count khul', fidiya, sulh and mubara'a. Without compensation, the Hanafis and Hanbalis see no khul': the wording falls into repudiation if intention or words push that way. Khul' before consummation: the wife returns half the mahr among Shafi'is and Hanbalis.
The majority (Hanafis, Malikis, Shafi'is, Hanbalis in one narration) counts the khul' as one final repudiation: a single divorce is deducted from the three, unless he names three or intends them. The husband cannot return during the waiting period: the separation is immediate, and if she marries someone else then comes back divorced, the count resumes with two repudiations left.
The khul' protects the wife from an impossible home without throwing her into injustice: she returns part of what she received, the marriage closes cleanly. The amount and the wording are settled with a scholar, never under pressure.
The majority requires it; Malikis admit the judge imposing khul' when harm is proven (Habiba bint Sahl's case, al-Bukhari 5273).
Typically yes: she returns what she received (Jamila's garden) as compensation; the amount is negotiated or set fairly.
No: khul' is a definitive break; remarriage requires a full new contract with mahr.
Seize the judge (or competent instance): tafriq for harm or nafqa default exists (see the judicial divorce page).