The iddat of a widow is four months and ten days (about 130 days), or until delivery if she is pregnant. After talaq or khula, a woman who has periods waits for three menstrual cycles, a woman who does not menstruate waits three months, and a pregnant woman waits until the birth. There is no iddat after a talaq before the marriage was consummated.
Enter the date and her situation above. The calculator counts lunar months with Pakistan's moon sighting dates where the school requires it, and for periods it estimates the dates from her usual cycle, which she can then check against the real ones.
Iddat periods at a glance
| Situation | Hanafi (Deobandi, Barelvi) | Ahl-e-Hadith | Shia (Fiqh Jafaria) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Widow, not pregnant | 4 months 10 days | 4 months 10 days | 4 lunar months 10 days, from when she learns of the death |
| Widow, pregnant | Until delivery | Until delivery | The later of delivery and 4 months 10 days |
| Talaq, has periods | 3 complete periods | 3 complete periods | Until the third period begins (three purities) |
| Khula, has periods | 3 complete periods | One period | As talaq |
| No periods, not menopause | 3 months | 3 months | 3 lunar months |
| After menopause | 3 months | 3 months | No iddat after talaq |
| Pregnant, after talaq or khula | Until delivery | Until delivery | Until delivery or miscarriage |
| Talaq before consummation | None, unless there was valid privacy | None | None |
A widow's iddat applies even if the marriage was never consummated, in every school.
Lunar months or 130 days
The Quran gives the widow's iddat as four months and ten days (al-Baqarah 2:234), and the months are lunar.
- Hanafi: if the death falls on the 1st of an Islamic month, count four Islamic months by the moon and then ten days. If it falls in the middle of a month, count 130 days (Jamia Binori Town). The same rule gives three months or 90 days after talaq for a woman without periods.
- Ahl-e-Hadith: the fatwas we checked state four months and ten days, or three months, without a separate rule for a start in the middle of a month. The calculator applies the Hanafi method for them and says so; ask your scholar whether to count days or lunar months.
- Shia (Sistani, ruling 2531): the months are lunar. If the iddat starts mid-month, the broken first month is completed to 30 days from the last month, and the months in between are counted by the moon.
Iddat ends at the same time of day as the death or talaq. The calculator uses Pakistan's Ruet-e-Hilal dates for the lunar months; see the Hijri date converter for any single date.
Worked examples
A widow, death on 1 Muharram 1447 (Friday 27 June 2025). The death is on the 1st, so four lunar months are counted: Muharram, Safar, Rabi ul Awwal and Rabi us Sani 1447 in Pakistan had 30, 30, 30 and 29 days. Four months end on 1 Jumadi ul Awwal (24 October 2025), and ten days later is Monday 3 November 2025, 129 days in all. Had the death been one day later, on 2 Muharram, a Hanafi widow would count 130 days to Wednesday 5 November 2025, while Sistani's rule gives Tuesday 4 November.
Talaq on 10 January 2026, last period began 1 January, cycle 28 days, periods of 6 days. The next periods would start about 29 January, 26 February and 26 March 2026.
- Hanafi: iddat ends when the third period ends, about Wednesday 1 April 2026 (81 days).
- Shia: it ends when the third period begins, about Thursday 26 March 2026 (75 days).
- Ahl-e-Hadith, if it had been a khula: one period, ending about Wednesday 4 February 2026.
A pregnant widow, husband died on 1 March 2026, baby born on 15 April 2026. Sunni schools: iddat ends with the birth on 15 April. Ja'fari fiqh: she waits until four months and ten days have passed, Tuesday 7 July 2026.
Khula, talaq in menstruation and the law in Pakistan
- Khula. Hanafi scholars treat khula as a final (bain) talaq, so the iddat is the full three periods. Ahl-e-Hadith scholars hold it is one period, from the hadith of the wife of Thabit bin Qais (Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi). Shia scholars count it like talaq.
- Talaq during a period. Hanafi fiqh treats it as valid but sinful, and that period does not count towards the three. In Ja'fari fiqh a talaq during menstruation is not valid when the marriage was consummated, the husband is present and the wife is not pregnant; the calculator warns you if the dates suggest this.
- The claim of three periods. Hanafi texts accept a woman's word that three periods have passed only if at least 60 days have gone by.
- Pakistani law. Under section 7 of the Muslim Family Laws Ordinance 1961, a talaq takes legal effect 90 days after the husband's notice to the Union Council chairman, or on delivery if the wife is pregnant. This legal period is separate from the fiqh iddat.
During a widow's iddat she avoids adornment. Hanafi scholars say she should spend her nights in the marital home and may go out by day only for need; Sistani allows her to leave the house. Arrangements such as the unpaid haq mehr remain a debt on the husband or his estate.
Iddat questions
How long is iddat after the death of the husband?
Four months and ten days, in every school. Hanafi scholars count lunar months if the death was on the 1st of an Islamic month and 130 days otherwise. A pregnant widow waits until delivery in Sunni fiqh, and until the later of delivery and four months ten days in Ja'fari fiqh.
What is the iddat after talaq?
Three complete menstrual cycles for a woman who has periods, three months for one who does not, and until delivery for a pregnant woman. In Ja'fari fiqh the three are periods of purity, so the iddat ends when the third period begins. There is no iddat after talaq before the marriage was consummated.
What is the iddat of khula?
Hanafi and Shia scholars give khula the same iddat as talaq: three periods, three months without periods, or delivery if pregnant. Ahl-e-Hadith scholars hold that the iddat of khula is one menstrual cycle, from the hadith of the wife of Thabit bin Qais.
Is iddat 90 days or 3 months?
For a woman who does not menstruate, it is three months. Hanafi scholars count three lunar months if the talaq was on the 1st of an Islamic month and 90 days otherwise. For a woman with periods, iddat is counted in periods, not days. The 90 days in MFLO section 7 is the legal waiting period for a talaq to take effect.
Can iddat end before three months?
Yes. A pregnant woman's iddat ends at the birth, even soon after the talaq. A woman with short, regular cycles can complete three periods in less than three months, though Hanafi texts accept that only after at least 60 days. In Ja'fari fiqh a woman past menopause has no iddat after talaq.
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Last reviewed 30 September 2026. Results are estimates; official notices always take precedence.