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Trial Marriage Arrives in Egypt: A Temporary Contract for Three Years, Renewable
A new initiative launched by lawyer Ahmed Meharan, director of the Cairo Center for Legal Studies, under the name “Trial Marriage,” has sparked widespread debate within religious and legal circles in Egypt. The proposal suggests entering into a marriage contract limited to three years, which can be renewed, aiming to reduce the rising divorce rates.
The concept entails attaching an additional civil contract to the official marriage contract, which includes a set of pre-agreed conditions between the spouses, covering financial matters, work, childbearing, and polygamy, while regulating the rights and obligations of each party in case the term expires or if a divorce occurs before that.
Meharan stated that the aim of this initiative is to “ensure stability in marital relationships” and to avoid sudden disagreements, clarifying that the contract does not include a divorce clause upon expiration; rather, it seeks to “renew trust” between the parties after the trial period.
In contrast, Al-Azhar University declared that “any marriage contract that includes a condition to limit its duration is invalid in Islamic law,” emphasizing that marriage in Islam is based on permanency rather than time restrictions. Additionally, the Egyptian Fatwa House announced it is studying the initiative from religious, legal, and social perspectives before issuing an official stance.
The introduction of “Trial Marriage” has ignited extensive discussions on social media, with some viewing it as a way to regulate relationships and reduce divorce rates, while others consider it a “pretext for temporary marriage” that contradicts Islamic law and threatens the stability of Egyptian families.
