Divorce

For Muslims in the UAE, divorce is the cancelling of the valid contract of marriage between the parties. The divorce can be commenced by the husband, or by the wife if her husband gave her the right to do so (Isma') in the marriage contract. If the wife is not given the right to divorce the husband within her marriage contract, she may still do so for reasons of 'harm'. The definition of harm is wide ranging and includes the 7 grounds for divorce set out below.

There are 2 routes to obtain a divorce:

1. The first is by pronouncing the 'Talaq' (which means 'I divorce you' in Arabic).

The husband or wife (if she has 'Isma') must say or write 'I divorce you' or 'Talaq' in the presence of a witness. For Muslims, religiously this is a valid method of divorce however, for the divorce to be legally recognized it should be registered with the court, this allows documentary evidence of the divorce to be relied upon in court in the future. (Article 106 Personal Status Law