Does divorce occur if a man tells his wife: "You are divorced if you do not arrive within an hour," and she is late beyond the specified time, but he waited for her and she returned home with him?
The majority of scholars hold that if a man swears an oath of divorce or makes divorce conditional upon a condition, and then breaks that oath or condition, his wife is divorced, whether he intended to effect the divorce or merely to threaten. Some scholars, such as Ibn Taymiyyah, consider one who swears by divorce for the purpose of threat to be like one who swears by Allah; in this case, an expiation for an oath (kaffarat yamin) becomes binding upon him, and no divorce occurs. The fatwa issued is based on the opinion of the majority. Therefore, if the wife was late beyond the specified time, her divorce has occurred. If it is not a third divorce, he may take her back during her 'iddah (waiting period). As for the opinion of Ibn Taymiyyah, if he did not intend to effect the divorce, then an expiation for an oath becomes binding upon him, and no divorce occurs.
Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026
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