Is it considered divorce in Islam if a married man tells another woman he's single?

Posts circulating on social media about husbands admitting that they are "a bachelor" in front of another woman and how this could be considered a pronouncement of talak (divorce) have sparked confusion and concern among many.

It is no surprise that many married couples were left feeling anxious and unsure if a careless joke or a poorly chosen word could suddenly impact their marriage.

That was one thing, but the situation grew worse when these claims were widely accepted as religious rulings without being verified through credible sources.

To clear up the confusion, well-known Islamic preacher Azhar Idrus clarified that the claim was false and such a statement does not lead to divorce.

"There was a post on Facebook claiming that if a husband says he’s single in front of another woman, it automatically counts as a pronouncement of talak.

"Many people were sharing it (the post) and saying it is wrong and that kind of statement is dangerous," he said on a YouTube video entitled "Bergurau, ‘ini bukan isteri saya’, adakah jatuh talak?"

He firmly explained that phrases like "I am single," "I’m not married," or "I don’t have a wife" do not lead to divorce as they fall under kinayah (ambiguous phrases) that do not clearly indicate divorce.

He said a divorce only takes effect if such words were spoken with the clear intention of divorcing in the heart like "I have divorced my wife."

He added that when some men claimed to be single as a way to flirt, it still did not fall under phrases that would result in divorce.

"Men, right? Of course they’re not going to say they’re married. How are they supposed to flirt if they admit they’re taken? So they say they’re single. That’s just how some guys flirt," he said jokingly.

However, Azhar also reminded viewers about the seriousness of making divorce statements, even in jest.

He stressed that if a man clearly and explicitly (sarih) pronounces divorce even as a joke, it can still count as a valid talak.

"If you joke with your wife or anyone else using a sarih divorce phrase, it still counts as a valid divorce," he said.

He pointed out that in Islam, there were three matters that were taken seriously even when said in jest which were marriage, divorce and reconciliation.

"For example, if a husband jokes with his wife saying "I’ve divorced you, just kidding." Even if he says it as a joke, it still counts as talak because the phrase was clear," he said.

He stressed that if a divorce statement was clear, complete and not a slip of the tongue, then it was valid and even if the person later claimed that they were just joking with their partner.

However, Azhar reminded that not all statements about divorce automatically leads in a divorce.

In such cases, he said, it was the Syariah Court that must determine whether a divorce has actually occurred.

"Whatever the case, it must go to the Syariah Court. Why? Because the answer depends on the question.

"Sometimes, the real situation is different from what was asked, so the ruling has to fit the actual circumstances," he said.

Besides intention and clarity, Azhar also emphasised that the structure of the sentence played a key role in determining whether a divorce was valid.

To help people understand better, he gave several examples of phrases that do not result in divorce:

"I divorce" – Incomplete as there’s no subject (no recipient of the action).

"You divorce you" – Not valid.

"I will divorce you" – Refers to the future, so it hasn’t happened.

"I divorce me" – Irrelevant and invalid.

Meanwhile, phrases that were valid and do cause divorce included: "I have divorced you", "I have pronounced talak on you" and "You are now divorced once."

He ended his talk with a reminder that Muslims should not hastily share religious rulings on social media without first verifying their authenticity.

"If you want to post a status (online), make sure it’s really accurate. Many people will share it and thousands more will repost it, so the reach gets even wider," he added.