Islamic marriage advice and family advice

Born out of wedlock to a Saudi, what are my rights?

Map of Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia.

Greetings,

I was born out of wedlock to a Saudi/Muslim man in the United States. I have a formal document that my father signed which acknowledges that he is my father.

What power does this document have if I present it to the Saudi Embassy? Dual citizenship? Inheritance?

Please advise.

Thank you,

- mateo


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15 Responses »

  1. Salaams,

    I think you would have to check with the Saudi government directly to find out what legal provisions you have as the child of a Saudi citizen. Are there certain rights you are seeking in particular?

    -Amy
    IslamicAnswers.com Editor

  2. i am sure that dual citizenship is not allowed. they would suggest you to be saudi OR american.

  3. Salam
    I think you would have to find out his whereabouts
    And go from there because I don't think they keep
    A record of everyone that live in Saudi Arabia.
    Hence the embassy wouldn't be much help in your
    Situation. Good luck sweety.

  4. I am quite familiar with this..As before i married my lovely husband i was going to marry a saudi...until i found out he had a child in the USA that he abandoned after finishing university. The saudi government recently has put out a law to where if a child of saudi parentage is born to a american they have to make a formal request to the embassy for dna results and that man is made to submit dna to claim parentage of the child. from their monetary rights are established and the child will be recognized as a saudi..this wasnt the case in the past..however since the mandate is new..i dont think they are really enforcing it. I have seen a few in britain get caught up with a saudi and it never ends well. Saudis in general have to get permission to marry foreigners(women) and the men if they do marry westerners they are still obliged to marry a saudi. even if you try to be honest with you i dont know if his family will accept you..

  5. all children born to saudi citizens are considered SAUDI..btw..but if you arent claimed or they cant find your father that will be a task..if he is willing to step forward you may have some leeway

    • Hello Ayatbinthamza,

      Thank you for your response. I wanted to inform you that I have a formal document that is signed, approved, and stamped where he acknowledges that he is my father. I was thinking of presenting this document to the Saudi Ministry of Interior. I also have pictures with him as a child and as of last week when he came to visit me. What are your thoughts?

  6. As a mother of a child born in US out of wedlock, I can safely tell you that you do not have dual citizenship rights and that you have no rights to inheritance. The Saudi government gives free education and housing and care of its orphans, but this is it. Sad to say. IF you are of a loving family, they may accept you but you would not be treated with the same regard socially. Being born out of wedlock is not legal in Saudi. As a mother, I would hope that you would do as I advised my son and live your BEST life here in the United States with no expectations about inheritance... I do not know what your situation is but I work very hard to make sure my son has everything he needs and sacrifice for his education without expecting any help from the Saudi government or his paternal family. It is a painful thing to have to say to you but you are better off socially being here in the U.S. where you are not stigmatized. Here, you can still marry well and you can carry the name of your biological father whether he recognizes you as his son or not - with or without paperwork. IF it is a Saudi identity that you seek, or your biological heritage, seek that... I can not see any "good" Muslim being a man that has children that he does not acknowledge or care for, law or no law. Maybe you should consider what it is you REALLY want. As I told my son, his inheritance is written in his DNA. Everything else is inconsequential.

  7. I'm a lawyer here. Since you born out if wed lock you have ni rights of anything. To be born from Saudi dad mean by both Saudi lawd and islam religion, you are offucially not belong to him by anymeans . Its a hopeless case other than in any other arab countries .

    • how about saudis marrying abroad without permission from the saudi government? are we considered born out of wedlock? and what rights do we have?

  8. I am the mother of an abandoned child of a Saudi man. My son is 31 years old now. I raised him as a single, unwed mother in the United States. I had one meeting with the Saudi Consulate general in Westwood, California when my son was about 2 years old and he was attending an Islamic school on Vermont Blvd. in Los Angeles, California. The meeting did not go well until my son wandered off into the prayer room and he was discovered by someone in the Consulate's office praying alongside another man. We went back to the office and I was told that my son would be recognized if I married the father (which I was willing to do) until I nearly lost my son as I was being "tricked" to walk through to the side of the room that was considered "Saudi soil". (It looked like the area you go through in an airport to be checked for weapons). I thank all the powers that be that my Aunt was with me that day (she was a retired Deputy Sheriff Officer) and not my father because my father would have insisted that I let my son go. Today, my son lives with me but he has earned a Master Degree in Media Arts & Graphic Design and NEVER makes me feel as if I am anything less than the hard working, devoted mother and parent that I strived to be. I am actually more interested than he is in learning more about his ancestry. He desires to go to Egypt one day, to travel the world and to do many things that unfortunately I do not have the financial means to do. A part of my family has accepted him and he uses my father's last name but I have told him who his biological father is and he knows that he comes from the Al Anazi tribe. I have had two DNA tests done and it is my deepest hope and desire that all of this forensic obfuscation about whether or not a child will or will not be recognized or accepted by the biological family he was seared from will end. I am sorry to hear about any mother who has borne a child that has been abandoned or not recognized because I empathize deeply with the daily struggle to raise a child, especially a son who by no fault of their own has been born into this world. I gave my son a choice as to whether or not he wanted to embrace Islam. He decided not to. But I did my duty to him and I made sure I sent him to good Islamic schools (when I was able to afford it) and that he was able to go to college. I may be in debt until the day that I die but when it is time for me to meet my maker, at least I can say that I was a good parent. I think it is a shame that any man or any family would not recognize their own blood. His particular tribe has over 160 generations... One would think by now that they would be the most humble, the most loving, the most forgiving. My son is a beautiful, highly intelligent, talented and gifted young man. It matters not to me if he marries a Saudi or not. What matters most to me is that he is kind, loving and respectful to women, to his elders and lives a happy life. He will find a good woman in his own time. And, I will teach them about their heritage to the best of my ability. ANY man who turns his back on his child is a coward. REGARDLESS of their religion. Just be the best parent you can be. A good man would step forward.

    • Thank you sister for sharing your experience. You've done a great job as a mother ma-sha-Allah.

      Wael
      IslamicAnswers.com Editor

      • I am leaving in karachi, Pakistan holding Shadata Milad 13 dec 1984
        Tareeq Islam Al Shasta : 15/7 1407 hijri
        AL Khubar
        Is that enough for getting jobless wazifa for being having Saudi birth
        If it's possible then from where

        • Brother Suhaib, there is no such thing in Islam as wazifa based on name and birthdate. Nor any wazifa at all. What you must do is make dua', and ask Allah to grant you waht you seek, and then be patient, and continue working toward your goal, inshaAllah.

          Wael
          IslamicAnswers.com Editor

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