Wife Maintenance Law in Pakistan – Legal Right to Financial Support
In Pakistan, wife maintenance law is based on both Islamic principles and statutory provisions, ensuring that a husband is legally obliged to provide for his wife during the subsistence of marriage. click here This maintenance, also referred to as nafaqah, includes expenses for food, clothing, medical care, housing, and other basic needs according to the social status of the couple. The obligation applies whether or not the wife has her own income, as the duty of support rests primarily on the husband under Islamic law.
If a husband fails to provide maintenance, the wife can file a suit for recovery of maintenance in the Family Court. The court may order monthly maintenance based on the husband’s financial capacity, lifestyle, and inflationary trends. In cases where the wife has been wrongfully neglected or abandoned, the court can also award arrears for previous unpaid maintenance. Even after divorce, the husband is required to maintain the wife during the iddat period, and in certain circumstances, longer support may be granted if the wife is unable to sustain herself.