Nafaqa maintenance in Qatar is a legal and religious obligation governed by Articles 59 to 85 of Family Law No. 22 of 2006. It covers maintenance for a wife, children, parents and other relatives, and the Family Court decides claims to set, increase or reduce it.
The law does not fix an amount; it leaves assessment to the judge using clear criteria. This guide explains the types of maintenance, how they are assessed, when they are due or lost, and how to bring a claim.
- Assessment criteria
- Payer's means, recipient's circumstances and economic conditions (Article 62)
- Past maintenance for a wife
- No more than three years before filing (Article 61)
- Child maintenance starts
- From the date the claim is filed (Article 79)
- Increase or reduction
- Generally after one year from when it was set (Article 60)
What types of maintenance exist under Qatar's Family Law?
- Marital maintenance: owed by a husband to his wife under a valid marriage contract (Article 61).
- Iddah maintenance: owed to a woman observing her waiting period after talaq or faskh, unless the faskh was caused by her (Article 70).
- Mut'a: compensation for a divorced wife where the divorce was caused by the husband, up to three years' maintenance (Article 115).
- Child maintenance: owed by the father to a young child who has no money of their own (Article 75).
- Custody fee and housing: payable to the custodian under Articles 178 and 181; see our guide to child custody in Qatar.
- Maintenance of parents and relatives: owed by a financially able child to parents in need, and by wealthier relatives who would inherit, in order (Articles 80 and 82).
How is maintenance calculated in Qatar?
Article 62 requires the court to consider three factors: the payer's means, the circumstances of the person being maintained, and economic conditions at the relevant time and place. Awards therefore vary from case to case depending on the payer's income and commitments and the family's usual standard of living.
A wife's maintenance covers food, clothing, housing and everything needed for life according to custom (Article 61). A child in custody is entitled to food, clothing, housing, medical care, education, necessary travel and anything else customarily regarded as essential (Article 76).
While a case is pending, the judge may, at the wife's request, order interim maintenance that is immediately enforceable (Article 63). After a divorce, the judge may, on request, issue an order for iddah maintenance and child maintenance, which is also immediately enforceable (Article 114).
When is a wife entitled to maintenance, and when is it lost?
A wife is entitled to maintenance from her husband under a valid marriage contract, provided she does not refuse to live with him as his wife (Article 61). The husband must provide suitable marital housing where he lives, appropriate to their circumstances (Article 64).
Under Article 69, a wife is considered disobedient (nashiz) and loses maintenance if she:
- refuses herself to her husband, or refuses to move into the marital home, without a lawful excuse;
- leaves the marital home without a lawful excuse;
- prevents her husband from entering the marital home without a lawful excuse;
- refuses to relocate with her husband without a lawful excuse, or travels without his permission;
- works outside the home without her husband's consent, unless he is acting unreasonably in preventing her from working.
A pregnant woman observing iddah receives maintenance until she gives birth (Article 70). A widow may live in the marital home during her iddah and may ask for temporary maintenance, which is deducted from her share of the inheritance (Article 71). A wife in a revocable divorce loses iddah maintenance if she leaves the marital home without a lawful excuse (Article 72). The obligation to maintain a wife ends on payment, release or the death of either spouse (Article 73).
How long does child maintenance last in Qatar?
Under Article 75, a father must maintain a young child who has no money of their own, as follows:
| Situation | Rule |
|---|---|
| Daughter | Until she marries; the father's duty revives if she is divorced or widowed and has no money or anyone else responsible for her |
| Son | Until he reaches the age at which boys like him usually earn a living |
| Son still studying | Continues while he pursues his studies with normal success |
| Adult child unable to earn | Remains on the father if the child cannot work because of disability or otherwise and has no money |
If a child's own money does not cover their needs, the father must make up the difference. A wealthy mother must maintain the child if the father and paternal grandfather are absent without money, or unable to pay (Article 78). The father also bears the cost of nursing if the mother cannot breastfeed, which counts as maintenance (Article 77).
Can you claim past maintenance or change the amount?
A wife cannot be awarded more than three years of maintenance before the date the claim was filed, unless the parties agree otherwise (Article 61). If she claims unpaid maintenance for a period when the couple lived together, the presumption is that the husband paid; she must prove otherwise, failing which the husband's word on oath prevails.
Child maintenance and maintenance for relatives are due from the date the claim is filed (Articles 79 and 84). Delaying a claim can therefore mean losing maintenance for the earlier period.
Maintenance may be increased or reduced when circumstances change, but a claim to do so is not heard until a year after the maintenance was set, unless the payer's financial position has changed (Article 60). Any increase or reduction runs from the date that claim is filed (Article 61).
How do you file a maintenance claim at the Family Court in Qatar?
- Identify the type and the beneficiaries: marital, iddah or child maintenance, or custody fee and housing.
- Gather evidence: the marriage contract, children's birth certificates, and proof of the payer's income and the family's actual expenses.
- Include every financial claim in the statement of claim to avoid the one-year bar under Article 59.
- Ask for interim maintenance if needed while the case is heard (Article 63).
- Obtain and enforce the judgment: ongoing maintenance takes priority over all other debts (Article 83).
Where the payer cannot support everyone entitled, the wife's maintenance comes first, then the children's, then the parents', then other relatives' (Article 83).
Do Qatar's maintenance rules apply to expatriates?
Article 16 of the Civil Code (Law No. 22 of 2004) provides that the personal and financial effects of marriage, including maintenance and dowry, are governed by the law of the husband's nationality at the time of the marriage; if the spouses later share a nationality, that law applies. Maintenance between relatives is governed by the law of the nationality of the person who owes it (Article 21).
A foreign rule that conflicts with public order or morals in Qatar will not be applied (Article 38). Working out which law applies needs a review of the marriage documents and each party's nationality.
How we can help
Al Murqab Law Office can help you work out the maintenance you are owed or can expect to pay, prepare maintenance claims, applications for interim maintenance and requests to vary an award, and follow up on enforcement. We do this as part of our family law services, with complete confidentiality, in Arabic and English.
Contact us on +974 7190 0190 (phone and WhatsApp) or info@almurqablaw.com, Sunday to Thursday, 8:00 to 17:00, with urgent consultations available 24/7.