Question
What is the sharee amount for Mahr? Based on Sunnah and fiqah. What will the amount be in US $ for a Nikah in USA ?
Answer
In the name of Allah the most Gracious the most Merciful,
Assalamualikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,
The minimum amount of Mahr in Hanafi madhab is 10 dirhams, which is equivalent to 31 grams of silver as mentioned in narrations. You can check the current price of silver/gram to find the minimum amount of Mahr due.
Shariah has advised us that Mahr shouldn't be an exorbitant amount which an average man finds difficult to pay, every man should look at his own financial situation and pay accordingly.
A sunnah Mahr would be Mahr Fatimi or the Mahr Rasūl-Allāh s.a.w.w himself gave to his wives, which was 1487.5 grams of silver.
Weather minimum or sunnah amount, Mahr has to be paid at the time of Nikah or as soon as possible. For an average working person living in USA, $300 Mahr would be within his ability. This is for those who can't afford Mahr Fatimi and don't want to pay just bare minimum.
And Allah knows best
Mufti Umer Farooq Saleem