Alemohamad Law Office

Written by Seyed Amir Alemohamad, attorney at law.

In recent years, reforming the mahriyeh law has become one of the major concerns of the legal community and Iranian families. Contrary to common perception, mahriyeh is not merely a number or a quantity of coins — it is a sign of respect for the wife, a financial guarantee, and a tool for preserving her economic security within marriage. However, rising inflation and the difficulty of enforcing large mahriyeh amounts led lawmakers, through the new mahriyeh bill, to try to strike a balance between supporting women and preventing the imprisonment of men who are unable to pay.

The main goal of the new law: preserving the dignity of both women and men

The new bill before the Islamic Consultative Assembly, by reducing the criminal ceiling on mahriyeh from 110 gold coins to 14 gold coins, appears on the surface to be aimed at reducing the number of mahriyeh-related prisoners; but the deeper reality of this reform is an effort to preserve the human dignity of both women and men together.

In the past, women who saw imprisoning their husbands as their only way to collect their financial rights were forced into lawsuits and judicial pursuit. This situation was harmful not only to men, but to the women themselves. Long court proceedings, psychological pressure, and distrust of the legal mechanism placed many women on an exhausting path to securing their rights.

The new law seeks to find a fairer path to realizing the wife's right by replacing imprisonment with electronic monitoring, formal installment plans, and the seizure of real assets — a path that preserves her dignity while also preventing the breakdown of the family.

The legal and religious standing of mahriyeh: a guarantee of a woman's financial security

Under Articles 1078 through 1085 of the Civil Code, mahriyeh is recognized as one of the fundamental pillars of permanent marriage.

Under Article 1082 of the Civil Code, a woman becomes the owner of the mahriyeh as soon as the marriage contract is concluded, and she may freely dispose of it. This article is one of the important principles of a wife's financial independence within marriage, and it emphasizes that mahriyeh is not merely a gift or a courtesy, but the wife's "certain, legal right."

In Islamic jurisprudence as well, mahriyeh is interpreted as a symbol of respect and of the husband's financial commitment to his wife — a tool for preserving the wife's dignity and security within the family structure. For this reason, any legislative reform must be carried out while preserving the spirit of this philosophy, not weakening it.

Women's concerns about the weakening of mahriyeh enforcement

With the passage of the new bill, some women's rights activists have raised concerns: does removing imprisonment not reduce the power to compel men to pay mahriyeh? Will this change not undermine women's rights?

The legal answer to these concerns is that imprisonment was never the lawmaker's actual goal — it was simply a means of compelling the debtor to pay. When the law can replace it with more effective civil guarantees, such as asset seizure, fair installment plans, and electronic monitoring of payments, imprisonment is no longer necessary.

That said, support for women should not be limited merely to removing imprisonment; mechanisms must also be put in place to ensure that mahriyeh is actually collected, so that no Iranian woman feels unprotected in securing her certain right.

A legal proposal for sustained support of women

As an attorney, I believe the proper implementation of the new law is only possible if the executive bodies act transparently and intelligently. My proposal for achieving lasting justice is the creation of a "National Mahriyeh and Marital Obligations System."

Under this system:

All mahriyeh payments and installments would be recorded transparently.
The wife could view the payment status without repeatedly going to court.
Banks and financial institutions would be required to automatically deduct installments and deposit them into the wife's account.
In the event of delay or evasion of payment, the system would immediately issue a warning and report it for enforcement of the judgment.

This mechanism not only prevents the wife's rights from being undermined, but also prevents the emergence of complex insolvency cases, prolonged litigation, and lengthy disputes.

The new mahriyeh law: an opportunity to rebuild women's trust in the law

One of the challenges of recent years has been the decline in women's public trust in the legal system on the issue of mahriyeh. Many women felt that the law did not provide sufficient support against economic pressure and the indifference of some men.

If properly implemented, the new law can become the turning point for rebuilding that trust. Electronic monitoring, regular installments, and the ability to pursue the matter intelligently spare the wife the costly path of repeated lawsuits and restore her to her rightful position — one based on respect, security, and justice.

On the other hand, men who are unable to pay are also freed from the fear of imprisonment and the collapse of their lives; as a result, families return to interaction and dialogue rather than confrontation.

Balancing support for women with social justice

Article 10 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran emphasizes strengthening the foundation of the family. The new mahriyeh law is precisely in line with this principle: the wife must feel secure, and the husband must not become a victim of financial inability.

True balance exists where the wife can receive her mahriyeh with confidence and respect, and the husband can pay it according to his real ability. This is the very concept that lawmakers have recognized in the phrase "mahriyeh subject to ability to pay" (mahriyeh-e andolestate), and with careful design, it can establish justice on both sides of married life.

Closing thoughts

Reforming the mahriyeh law, if implemented with a knowledgeable and humane outlook, is neither a threat to women nor a burden on men — rather, it is the beginning of redefining justice within the Iranian family. Mahriyeh should not be a tool of revenge or pressure; it should be a guarantee of love, respect, and a woman's economic security.

Ultimately, it must be said: a law is just only when both the wife's right and the husband's dignity are preserved, and the family emerges from it with its head held high.

If accompanied by education, cultural awareness, and precise monitoring systems, the new mahriyeh law can be a major step toward genuine support for women, fewer family disputes, and the rebuilding of trust in the country's legal system.