Short answer
If you swear by Allah to do or not do something and then break it, the kaffarah (expiation) is to feed ten poor people or clothe them. Only if you cannot afford that do you fast three days, which the Hanafi school says must be in a row. The kaffarah is paid after the oath is broken.
Breaking a binding oath (yamin mun'aqida) makes kaffarah wajib: feed ten poor people two full meals each (or give each the fitrah amount or its value), or clothe ten poor people. If you cannot afford either, fast three consecutive days. Kaffarah given before breaking the oath does not count.
Other madhhabs
- Shafi'i
- Kaffarah may be paid before breaking the oath (except by fasting), and the three days need not be consecutive. Food must be given, not its cash value.
- Maliki
- The three days of fasting need not be consecutive, and cash value is not accepted in place of food.
- Hanbali
- The three days must be consecutive, as with the Hanafis, but cash value is not accepted, and the kaffarah may be paid before breaking the oath.
Explanation
Allah explains the kaffarah of oaths in Surah al-Ma'idah: feeding ten needy people from the average food you give your family, or clothing them, or freeing a slave. Whoever cannot afford these fasts three days. The order matters: fasting is only for someone who cannot afford to feed or clothe.
Which oaths need it? In the Hanafi school there are three kinds:
- Binding oath (mun'aqida): an oath about the future, such as 'Wallahi I will not smoke again'. Breaking it needs kaffarah.
- Careless oath (laghw): an oath you believed true about the past that turned out wrong. No sin and no kaffarah.
- False oath (ghamus): a deliberate lie under oath. No kaffarah, only tawbah. See swearing by Allah and lying.
If you swore not to do something good, such as 'I swear I won't speak to my brother', the Prophet ﷺ told us to do what is better and pay the kaffarah. Keeping an oath that cuts family ties is not a virtue.
How to pay in practice: in the Hanafi school you may give each of ten poor people the same amount as zakat al-fitr, in food or its cash value, or give one poor person that amount for ten days. Two or more broken oaths need a kaffarah each. The kaffarah calculator works out the amount where you live. Swearing on your mother's life or similar is not a valid oath and has no kaffarah, but it is a sin; see swearing on your mother.
Ask a mufti about your own case. This answer explains the general ruling. When the details of your situation matter, as they do here, ask a qualified mufti and give them the full facts. Where to ask a scholar.
The evidence
Quran, Surah Al-Maaida 5:89
لَا يُؤَاخِذُكُمُ ٱللَّهُ بِٱللَّغْوِ فِىٓ أَيْمَٰنِكُمْ وَلَٰكِن يُؤَاخِذُكُم بِمَا عَقَّدتُّمُ ٱلْأَيْمَٰنَ ۖ فَكَفَّٰرَتُهُۥٓ إِطْعَامُ عَشَرَةِ مَسَٰكِينَ مِنْ أَوْسَطِ مَا تُطْعِمُونَ أَهْلِيكُمْ أَوْ كِسْوَتُهُمْ أَوْ تَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍۢ ۖ فَمَن لَّمْ يَجِدْ فَصِيَامُ ثَلَٰثَةِ أَيَّامٍۢ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ كَفَّٰرَةُ أَيْمَٰنِكُمْ إِذَا حَلَفْتُمْ ۚ وَٱحْفَظُوٓا۟ أَيْمَٰنَكُمْ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ ءَايَٰتِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿٨٩﴾
Allah will not impose blame upon you for what is meaningless in your oaths, but He will impose blame upon you for [breaking] what you intended of oaths. So its expiation is the feeding of ten needy people from the average of that which you feed your [own] families or clothing them or the freeing of a slave. But whoever cannot find [or afford it] - then a fast of three days [is required]. That is the expiation for oaths when you have sworn. But guard your oaths. Thus does Allah make clear to you His verses that you may be grateful.
This ayah sets out the kaffarah for broken oaths and its order.
Sahih Muslim 1650
Sahih... من حلف على يمين فرأى غيرها خيرا منها فليكفر عن يمينه ...
"Whoever swears an oath and then sees something better than it, let him pay the expiation for his oath and do what is better."
Breaking an oath for something better is allowed with kaffarah.
Where the ruling is recorded
- al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Ayman, chapter on the kaffarah of oaths. Feeding, clothing, and consecutive fasting for one who cannot afford them; no kaffarah before breaking the oath.
- al-Durr al-Mukhtar, Kitab al-Ayman. Giving the value in place of food is permitted.
- al-Mughni (Ibn Qudama), Kitab al-Ayman. The Hanbali view on consecutive fasting and on paying before breaking.
Checked by our team. For a more accurate answer to your own situation, consult a scholar. Quran translation by Sahih International. Hadith Arabic from the standard editions of the six books and the Muwatta, with gradings as recorded there; the English is our own rendering. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.