The Gulf states (GCC) and Iran: polygyny, registration and wives' rights

1Overview of the law

All Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states have a personal status law codified from fiqh. Unlike Malaysia, no GCC state requires court permission before a husband marries again. Control is exercised through (i) mandatory registration of the contract, (ii) declaration of the husband's marital status in the contract, (iii) the wife's right to stipulate conditions in the contract, and (iv) the right to divorce or judicial dissolution (fasakh) if a condition is breached or harm occurs. Iran, based on Ja'fari fiqh, regulates through the courts.

Saudi Arabia is covered on its own page: Saudi Arabia. Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey: Middle East.

2United Arab Emirates (UAE)

The law: Federal Decree-Law No. 41 of 2024 on Personal Status, issued in October 2024 (the legislation portal lists 1 October; published 14 October) and in force from 15 April 2025, replacing Federal Law No. 28/2005. It applies to Muslims; non-Muslims may opt for Decree-Law 41/2022 on Civil Personal Status.

• Age: capacity to marry at 18 Gregorian years; under 18 only with the court's permission (article 19).
• Limit of four: marrying a fifth woman is a temporary impediment, even if one of the wives is in the ʿiddah of a revocable talaq (talak raj'i) (article 32(4)).
• Contract conditions (article 33): breach of a valid condition gives the other party the right to apply for dissolution of the contract; this right lapses one year after learning of the breach. The condition must be written in the contract or acknowledged by the spouses. This is the route for a wife who stipulates that her husband will not marry again — even though the law does not name that condition specifically.
• Justice: the husband must be just between his wives in treatment, the rotation of nights and maintenance (article 49(6)); he may house the wives in the same building if each has near-complete independence (article 105(4)).
• Notifying the wife: a review of the English text of the 2024 law found no provision requiring the existing wife to be informed of a new marriage (to be verified).
• Talaq: the husband must document the talaq in court within 15 days (article 58); if late without excuse, the wife is entitled to compensation.

3Kuwait and Qatar

4Oman and Bahrain

5Iran: court permission and temporary marriage

The law: the Iranian Civil Code (Ja'fari fiqh) and the Family Protection Law 2013 (passed 1 Esfand 1391, published Farvardin 1392). The Family Court hears marriage and divorce cases.

• History: the Family Protection Laws of 1967 and 1975 required court permission for a second wife and the first wife's consent, with exceptions such as the wife's infertility or incapacity; the wife was also entitled to divorce if the husband married again without her consent. After 1979 these restrictions were relaxed, but the 1986 law restored the wife's right to divorce if the husband marries again without her permission. Article numbers and the extent to which the courts still apply them (to be verified).
• The 2008–2012 controversy: draft article 23 of the bill proposed that a permanent second wife need only the court's permission after proof of financial ability and a commitment to justice — without the first wife's consent. The provision met widespread opposition and was reportedly dropped from the final 2013 law (to be verified).
• Registration: the 2013 law requires registration of permanent marriage, divorce and rujuk; failure is punished with a fine. Article numbers and fine amounts (to be verified).
• Mutʿah (temporary) marriage is recognised in the Civil Code according to Ja'fari fiqh. The four Sunni schools regard mutʿah marriage as abrogated and void — see Comparison of schools.

No official statistics on polygynous marriages from Iran's National Organization for Civil Registration were found.

6Divorce and wives' rights

7Isu semasa dan pindaan terkini

• UAE (2024–2025): the new personal status law sets the age at 18, custody until 18 years with the child's choice at 15 years, and a duty to document talaq within 15 days.
• Bahrain (2017): the first unified family law, also covering the Ja'fari community.
• Kuwait (2019): codification of the Ja'fari personal status law (No. 124/2019).
• Iran: the implementing regulations of the Family Protection Law were amended in 1402 SH (2023) (to be verified).

8Apa yang perlu diketahui oleh rakyat Malaysia

• Malaysian Syariah Court permission is still required. A polygynous marriage in the Gulf without the permission of the state Syariah Court may attract action under state Islamic family law when it is registered in Malaysia — see Cross-border and Recognition.
• Local registration: the contract must be made by a licensed official/court. An unregistered contract affects visas, residence, the wife's rights and the establishment of the child's lineage (nasab) — see Unofficial marriage.
• Foreign nationals: expatriate workers usually need status documents (a certificate of single status/permission) and embassy attestation; some countries also require approval for citizens to marry foreigners (to be verified).
• Malaysian women who marry in the Gulf: include conditions in the contract if you wish, and make sure the contract is re-registered in Malaysia.
• Mutʿah marriage in Iran is not recognised by Islamic family law in Malaysia and is rejected by the Shafi'i school.
• Seek help from the Malaysian Embassy before and after the marriage contract — see the Directory.

Sumber & rujukan