Ruling 2430. It is unlawful for a woman in a permanent marriage to leave the house without the permission of her husband even if this does not infringe on his rights, except in the following cases: [i] a necessity requires her to; [ii] staying in the house causes her hardship (ḥaraj); [iii] the house is not appropriate for her. Also, she must submit to giving her husband sexual pleasure, which is his right, whenever he wishes, and she must not prevent him from having sexual intercourse with her without a legitimate excuse (ʿudhr). It is obligatory for a husband to provide his wife with food, clothing, housing, and other things she needs. If he does not provide these for her, irrespective of whether he is able to or not, he will be indebted to her. Furthermore, one of the rights of a wife is that her husband must not subject her to harassment or abuse, and he must not treat her harshly or roughly without a legitimate reason.

Ruling 2431. If a woman does not perform any of her marital duties towards her husband, she has no right over him for food, clothing, and housing, even if she continues to live with him. If she sometimes refuses to submit to her husband’s legitimate sexual wants, then based on obligatory precaution, he is not exempted from providing her with her maintenance. As for her dowry, if she does not perform her duties, he is in no way exempted [from owing it to her].

Ruling 2432. A man has no right to compel his wife to do housework.

Ruling 2433. If a wife’s living expenses when she is outside her home town (waṭan) are more than when she is in her home town, in the event that she travels to that place with the permission of her husband, her living expenses must be borne by her husband. However, the costs of travelling by car, plane, and suchlike, and other expenses necessary for her travel, must be borne by herself. If a husband wants his wife to travel, he must pay for her travel expenses. The same applies if travelling is necessary for her, such as travelling for medical treatment.

Ruling 2434. If a wife’s living expenses are borne by her husband but he does not pay for them, she can take her living expenses from his property without his consent. If this is not possible, in the event that she cannot complain to a fully qualified jurist about this and has no option but to work to meet her living expenses, then while she is working to meet her living expenses, it is not obligatory for her to obey her husband [in those matters that are normally obligatory for her to obey him].

Ruling 2435. If, for example, a man has two permanent wives and he stays with one of them one night, it is obligatory for him to also stay with his other wife one in every four nights. Apart from this case, it is not obligatory for him to stay with his wife. However, it is necessary that he does not totally abandon her, and the more precautious and more preferred (al‑aḥwaṭ al‑awlā) [juristic opinion][1] is that a husband should stay with his permanent wife one in every four nights.

Ruling 2436. A husband cannot refrain from having sexual intercourse with a young wife of his for more than four months unless sexual intercourse is harmful or excessively difficult (mashaqqah) for him, or the wife consents to it, or he had stipulated a condition in the marriage contract regarding this. There is no difference in this rule, based on obligatory precaution, whether the husband is in his home town or not. Therefore, based on obligatory precaution, it is not permitted for a husband to continue on a non-essential trip for more than four months without a legitimate excuse and without his wife’s permission.

Ruling 2437. If in a permanent marriage contract the parties do not specify the dowry, the contract is valid. [If the dowry is not specified, then] in the event that the husband has sexual intercourse with his wife, he must pay her a dowry that women like her usually receive. As for temporary marriage, in the event that the parties do not specify the dowry – even if that be due to ignorance, negligence, or forgetfulness – the marriage contract is invalid.

Ruling 2438. If at the time of concluding a permanent marriage contract a period is not specified for giving the dowry, the wife can refuse to have sexual intercourse with her husband before receiving the dowry, irrespective of whether her husband is able to pay the dowry or not. However, if she consents to have sexual intercourse before receiving the dowry and her husband has sexual intercourse with her, she can no longer refuse to have sexual intercourse with him without a legitimate excuse.