All perfect praise be to Allah the Lord of the Worlds. May His peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

A valid Khalwa is defined as a meeting between a man and a woman who have performed the marriage contract but have not yet consummated the marriage in a place where they are safe from being seen by others, and there is no barrier preventing actual consummation. This Khalwa has great significance due to the numerous Sharia rulings that depend on the validity of its occurrence.

It is considered equivalent to actual consummation in a valid contract even if consummation does not occur. The Hanafi scholar Al-Sughdi (May Allah have mercy on him) said: "As for consummation, its ruling is if a door is closed, or a curtain is drawn, or they are secluded for a period in which he could have intercourse with her, and there is no reason preventing intercourse between them, then that necessitates the full dowry and the waiting period (iddah), whether he had intercourse with her or not, if the marriage is valid." [Al-Nutf fi Al-Fatawa, Vol. 1/P. 298].

The Jordanian Personal Status Law No. 15 of 2019 stipulates that a valid Khalwa serve as equivalent to actual consummation in proving the full dowry payment to the wife. Article 43 of the law states: "If a dowry is specified in a valid marriage contract, it must be paid in full, even if before consummation or khalwa, and also in case of divorce after valid khalwa."

The law also states that matters not explicitly addressed in the law shall be referred to the predominant view of the Hanafi school of thought, or to other schools of thought that are consistent with the provisions of the law. Article 325 states: "Matters not mentioned in this law shall be referred to the predominant view of the Hanafi school of thought. If there is no ruling, the court shall apply the Islamic jurisprudence most consistent with the provisions of this law."

The conditions for a valid Khalwa are as follows:

1-The marriage contract must be valid, not invalid or void.

2-The place of their meeting must be secure for them, such that if the husband wishes to consummate the marriage, he could do so. Thus, Khalwa is not valid in places like mosques, roads, markets, deserts, on the roof of a house, or in a room with an open door.

3-Absence of impediments, which fall into three categories:

a. Sensory impediments, such as the presence of a sane third person. 

b. Natural impediments, such as illness, young age, deformity in the wife`s genitals, or husband having a severed penis. However, husband being impotent or castrated does not prevent valid Khalwa.

 c. Sharia impediments, such as menstruation, postpartum bleeding, fasting in Ramadan, being in a state of ihram for Hajj or Umrah, performing i'tikaf. However, fasting for makeup days, vows, expiations, or voluntary fasting does not invalidate Khalwa.

These conditions are based on the Hanafi school of thought, as referenced in Ibn Abidin's "Al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Vol.3/P.114" and Al-Mawsuli's "Al-Ikhtiyar li Ta'lil al-Mukhtar, Vol.3/P.103."

The valid Khalwa confirms some rulings but not others. It confirms full dowry payment, lineage, waiting period ('iddah), financial support, housing, prohibition of marrying her sister, marrying a fourth wife until her (woman involved in Khalwa) waiting period ends, consideration of divorcing her during purity (tuhr) and not menstruation. However, valid Khalwa does not confirm chastity, prohibiting marriage to a slave girl, making divorce revocable, inheritance between them, or that divorce applies to her.

Imam Al-Zayla'i, a Hanafi jurist, said: "Know that our fellow scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, established valid Khalwa as equal to intercourse in confirming certain rulings, not all. They established it for confirming the dowry amount, lineage, waiting period, financial support, housing during the waiting period, marrying her sister, marrying other than her up to four, prohibiting marriage to a slave girl based on the analogy of Abu Hanifa's opinion, considering the timing of divorce in her case. However, they did not establish it as confirming chastity, prohibition of marrying daughters, allowing her for the first husband again, revocable divorce, inheritance. Regarding the occurrence of another divorce, there are two narrations, and the closer one is that it occurs." {Tabieen Al-Haqaik Shareh Kanz Ad-Daga`ig wa Hasheyat Ash-Shalabi, Vol.2/P.144}.

Therefore, the Jordanian Personal Status Law No. 15 of 2019 stipulates that the waiting period ('iddah) is established by valid Khalwa, and it does not mention invalid Khalwa. Article 145/c states: "If divorce or annulment occurs after a valid marriage contract, the waiting period is not required except with consummation or valid Khalwa. If annulment occurs after an invalid marriage contract, the waiting period is required only with consummation."

According to Article 325, which states that issues not addressed in the law refer to the prevailing opinion of Imam Abu Hanifa's school of thought, which establishes the waiting period for both valid and invalid Khalwa. In [Hashiyat Ibn Abidin 3/ 114], it is mentioned: "The waiting period is required by Khalwa even if it is invalid."

The establishment of the full dowry (mahr) by valid Khalwa is also the old position of the Shafi'i school of thought. Check: [Al-Khatib Al-Shirbini, Mughni Al-Muhtaj, Vol. 4/P. 374].

Therefore, the conditions for valid Khalwa, which establish the full dowry, are: the contract must be valid, the couple must meet in a place where they are safe from being seen by others, and there must be no physical, natural, or Sharia impediments preventing consummation. This means that if the husband wanted to consummate the marriage, he could. And Allah the Almighty knows best.