Fatwa #4625118 August 2025United Kingdom
Women living alone and adopting children - Is this advisable?
Question
Salaam,
I wanted to know that if a 27 year old girl completed her iddat at her parents house as she couldn't go out and was financially supported by her parents, after the iddat as a divorcee woman can she get her own house on rent and live alone in the same city as her parents? she will be working in a women only environment or then from home. Her father can't financially support her long term, and her mother supports in running the house so she would be regardless have to work to support herself. It also opens the opportunity for her to foster/adopt young children if she lives alone.
Does a divorcee woman have to get married again or can she settle alone and foster /adopt kids.
Answer
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
As-salāmu ‘alaykum wa-rahmatullāhi wa-barakātuh
It is the responsibility of the father to support and maintain his daughter until she remarries. If she returns home as a divorcee or widow, he should support and maintain her. That is a great act of Sadaqah. It is stated in the Ahadith:
حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا زَيْدُ بْنُ الْحُبَابِ، عَنْ مُوسَى بْنِ عُلَىٍّ، سَمِعْتُ أَبِي يَذْكُرُ، عَنْ سُرَاقَةَ بْنِ مَالِكٍ، أَنَّ النَّبِيَّ ـ صلى الله عليه وسلم ـ قَالَ " أَلاَ أَدُلُّكُمْ عَلَى أَفْضَلِ الصَّدَقَةِ ابْنَتُكَ مَرْدُودَةً إِلَيْكَ لَيْسَ لَهَا كَاسِبٌ غَيْرُكَ " . (سنن ابن ماجه 3667)
Translation: It was narrated from Hazrath Suraqah bin Malik (Radhiyallahu Anhu) that the Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) said: "Shall I not tell you of the best charity? A daughter who comes back to you and has no other breadwinner apart from you."
In this age of fitnah and immorality, we advise against an unmarried woman living by herself. She is not free of her Nafs (carnal desires). Furthermore, there are many vultures out there to prey and abuse on such vulnerable women. It is therefore best for such a woman to stay with her parents. The difficulty of financial constraints is lesser than the difficulty of controlling ones Nafs when staying alone. If a woman is constrained to live by herself and to earn her own income, then it will be permissible only if she is able to protect herself from fitnah. In that instance she should consider staying with her parents or some influential family member who can be a means to protect her. She should also consider getting married to save her from fitnah and be taken care of financially.
And Allah Ta’ala Knows best
M. Akhtar
Student Darul Iftaa
South Africa
Checked and Approved by,
Mufti Ebrahim Desai.
(2020-12-05)