Question:

Does one have to bring his second/third/fourth wife back to his land after? How does he divide the rights between them if they live in different lands?

Answer:

Imam Ibn Qudamah rahimahullah said:

“If he has two wives in two lands, then it is upon him to be just between them  because he has chosen the far distance between them, so both their rights do not fall off of him due to that. Either he goes to the one who is absent in her days or he brings her to him and combines between both of them in one land. If she refrains from coming [to him when he requests] with the ability to do so, then her right drops of her due to her discord. If he wants to divide the time between them in their respective lands, then it is not possible that he divides the time night by night. He makes it a duration in accordance to his ability, like month by month or more than that or less than that in accordance to the best of his ability and in accordance to the nearness of the two lands or the far distance between them”.

[al-Mughni (8/149). Also see: Jami’ Ahkaam an-Nisaa (3/502)]

Translated by

Faisal Ibn Abdul Qaadir Ibn Hassan
Abu Sulaymaan