Pretended embracing Christianity to get nationality in a Western country
Fatwa No: 100580

Question

Asalam-u-Alaikum For getting Canadian Nationality my father say(lie) in Canadian court that he accept Christian since 1985. Now he accept that he had done wrong Will you please tell what is they way of doing Tauba. either he can do tauba alone or he have to do it publicaly as he had said about accepting Christianity publicaly in Canadian court and what about his Nikah either he had to do it again or the previous one is valid Asalam-u-Alaikum

Answer

All perfect praise be to Allaah, The Lord of the Worlds. I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allaah, and that Muhammad is His slave and Messenger.

 

If what you mentioned in the question is true that your father pretended embracing Christianity, then he became an apostate; lying in this regard is not an impediment about confirming his apostasy.

Undoubtedly, he is obliged to sincerely repent to Allaah and re-embrace Islam and utter The Two Testimonies of Faith. He is not obliged to announce his repentance in public but he is obliged to perform the Friday prayer with the Muslims, attend the congregational prayers and so forth.

In case he repented and embraced Islam before the end of the waiting period that his wife is observing due to the contract being invalidated, then the marriage contract is still valid. According to the correct opinion of the scholars the separation between the spouses when one of them apostates depends on the expiry of the waiting period of the woman.

If he repented after the expiry of the waiting period, and he wanted to remarry, he is obliged to conduct a new marriage contract, fulfilling the conditions of a valid marriage, i.e. the presence of a guardian, two witnesses and a dowry.

Allaah Knows best.

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