Who owns what in a marriage in Egypt?
In Egypt the personal-status rules apply, each spouse generally owns their own property, and the marriage contract can include agreed conditions.
Updated October 2026. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
What applies by default
Each spouse owns their own property. The husband has duties of support, and a wife is entitled to her dowry.
When the marriage ends in divorce
Each spouse generally keeps their own property, and financial claims depend on the personal-status rules and on the court.
A marriage contract
The marriage contract can include conditions the spouses agree to, such as on the wife's rights.
What stays your own, and gifts
Property from before the marriage, gifts and inheritances stay personal.
If one spouse is a foreigner
For a foreign spouse, get local advice on which rules and which courts apply.
Understand the legal system first
Egypt belongs to the Religious (Islamic) law is a leading source family. Family law grows out of the legal tradition, so it helps to know how the system works.
Read the Egypt legal-system profile in the Legal Families Atlas →
Can a foreigner buy property in Egypt? →
Official sources
Take it further
The family and property rules of a European country in one PDF, with questions for a local lawyer.
Set the property rules before the marriage, in your own terms.
For couples who live together without marrying.
Marriage, divorce, custody and support, step by step.
Divide property and settle the terms in writing.
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TheLawToKnow Tools’s marital property guide is an educational overview of general rules. It is not legal advice, and it does not replace the official source or a lawyer in the country. Report a mistake.
