What is the ruling on one who swore an oath of divorce upon his wife that she should not go to her family's house, as a threat, and she went; does the divorce take place, and if not, what should he do, and is expiation for an oath (kaffarat yamin) incumbent upon him?

Scholars have differed regarding the ruling on swearing an oath by divorce as a threat. The preponderant view, according to us—which is the opinion of the majority—is that the man who swore to his wife that she should not go to her parents' house, and then she went, has divorced his wife by breaking his oath of divorce. If this divorce does not complete the three (talaqs), he may take his wife back before her 'iddah (waiting period) expires.

As for the view of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah, his divorce did not occur by his wife going to her parents, but he must pay an expiation for an oath (kaffarat yamin). A man should avoid swearing an oath by divorce; the lawful oath is to swear by Allah the Almighty. And as part of good companionship, a husband should not prevent his wife from visiting her parents without a valid justification.