Migrant Life Hack: When Your Prayer & Fasting Rules Change — The Simple Line You Need to Know
If you do not intend to return to your homeland and plan to reside permanently in the new location, the rulings for a resident apply to you from the outset.
Status | Prayer | Fasting |
|---|---|---|
Resident | Must perform full prayers on time | Must observe full fasts |
Traveler | May shorten (combine or shorten) prayers | Permitted to break (not fast) |
Item | Explanation |
|---|---|
Determining primary residence | Identifying your main residence can be complex and may require asking a religious authority (estefta’) in some cases. |
Travel rulings | Travel concessions include shortening prayers, breaking fasts, and a few other allowances. |
Change of status | If your status changes from resident to traveler or vice versa, the related rulings change accordingly. |
Question: A woman who moved from her original homeland to another city to follow her husband after marriage — when she visits her parents in her homeland, what is the ruling for her prayers and fasts? Considering she left without intending to permanently abandon her homeland and several years have passed, does the ruling of the homeland remain?
Answer: In general, a woman who lives outside her original homeland because she followed her husband and does not intend to return — if she does not know or is not certain that she will never return in her lifetime, and there remains a possibility she might return (for example after divorce or the husband’s death), then the ruling of the homeland remains and she should perform full prayers.
However, if she has decided or knows that she will not return in any case, or a very long time (for example forty or fifty years) has passed and she has not even thought about returning during that time, then estrangement (e’rad) is realized and that place is not considered her homeland — in that case she is treated as a resident of the new place: prayers may be shortened and fasting would not be valid to break (i.e., she would be considered a resident and earlier travel concessions would not apply).
Ruling on Prayer and Fasting for Migrants: Distinguishing Duties in Two Places
6) At-a-glance & Ingredients
Not a recipe — no servings, time, difficulty, or ingredients are present in the source article.
At-a-glance
Situation | Applies |
|---|---|
Permanent resident in new location | Full prayers on time; full fasting required |
Traveler (temporary) | Allowed to shorten prayers; allowed to break fast |
Unclear residency status | May require asking a qualified religious authority; rulings change if status changes |
Tip | |
|---|---|
Decide calmly and respectfully about residence and religious practice. | |
If you are a resident where you live, perform full prayers and fasts there. | |
If you are a traveler, you may shorten prayers and are permitted to break a fast. | |
Determining your main residence can be complex — ask a religious authority (estefta’) when unsure. | |
If unsure, consult a qualified religious authority. |
