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Is it permissible for a wife to return to her husband after he divorced her verbally and twice via text messages, saying "You are divorced" and then "You are divorced, divorced, divorced"?

1 min readAlso available in العربية

Divorce by writing, according to the majority of scholars, does not take effect unless the husband intends it. If the husband intended divorce by writing the messages, then three divorces have occurred. According to what is held to be the correct opinion, this constitutes a major irrevocable divorce (baynunah kubra), and she is not lawful for him until she marries another man out of genuine desire, and he consummates the marriage with her, then divorces her or dies, and her 'iddah (waiting period) expires.

Some scholars are of the view that consecutive triple divorce does not take effect before a new رجعة (reconciliation) or a new marriage contract, citing the opinion of Shaykh al-Islam Ibn Taymiyyah that only one divorce occurs.

Given that there is a difference of opinion on this matter, it is best to present it to a Sharia court or trusted scholars.

Summarized from the full answer at Ftawy · reviewed Sep 2, 2026

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