How much hair should a woman cut for umrah?

Explanation

The Prophet ﷺ said women do not shave; women only trim. The four schools agree that shaving is not part of a woman's Hajj or umrah, and differ only on how much of her hair the trim must cover.

1. Do it in private, in your hotel room or a women's area, since your hair must not be seen by non-mahram men.
2. Gather all your hair, or divide it into a few bunches, and hold the ends together.
3. Cut about an inch (a fingertip length) from the ends. If your hair is layered, make sure the cut catches the hair across your head, not only the longest strands.

• Short hair: cut a fingertip length from the ends all round.
• Who cuts: you, your husband, a mahram, or another woman. If the person cutting is in ihram, she should have finished her own rites first.
• Where: inside the Haram of Makkah, which in the Hanafi school is required to avoid a penalty.
• Hair under the hijab: keep it covered when you return to the mosque.

Cutting a few strands from the fringe alone does not meet the Hanafi minimum. If you already did that and left ihram, you are still in ihram in that school; trim properly now and see forgot to cut hair for any penalty.

The evidence

Where the ruling is recorded

• al-Hidaya, Kitab al-Hajj, on halq and taqsir. There is no shaving for women; they trim.
• Radd al-Muhtar (Ibn Abidin), Kitab al-Hajj, the wajibs of Hajj. The quarter and the fingertip length for a woman's trim.

This answer is pending review by the scholars on our team. 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.