In summer, twilight remains in the sky over Britain until close to Fajr, so the time of Isha never clearly begins, and many mosques therefore combine Maghrib and Isha. What is the ruling?
It is well known that the times of Maghrib and Isha are as stated in the Sunnah: "The time of Maghrib prayer lasts as long as the twilight has not disappeared, and the time of Isha prayer lasts until the middle of the night."
In countries like this one, the time of Isha does not clearly begin in summer, because light remains in the sky until dawn. For this reason many mosques begin to combine the two prayers.
In truth, the fact that the time of Isha does not begin is not, on its own, a valid reason to combine according to the majority of scholars, past and present. This is also the resolution of the Islamic Fiqh Council of the Muslim World League, among others.
They cite as evidence the hadith about the Dajjal: We said, "O Messenger of Allah, how long will he remain on earth?" He said: "Forty days: one day like a year, one day like a month, one day like a week, and the rest of his days like your days." We said, "O Messenger of Allah, on that day which is like a year, will the prayers of one day be enough for us?" He said: "No. Estimate its measure." (Narrated by Muslim.)
Combining prayers was legislated for an excuse or a need, not because prayer times overlap.
So what should we do?
We estimate the prayer time. We look at the nearest Muslim country and the length of time between Maghrib and Isha there, and follow it. For example, Morocco is the nearest Muslim country to Britain, and the gap between Maghrib and Isha there in summer is around an hour and a half, so we follow that.
Whoever prays at home, or can apply this in the mosque, is doing what is better and preferable.
Are mosques that combine mistaken?
Combining because the times overlap is not, in my view, correct. But if they combine because of hardship, there is no harm, as the principle states: hardship brings ease.
It is well known that Maghrib can be as late as about 9:55 pm and Isha around 11 pm, and it is hard for people to come to the mosque at that time. Mosques are far away, people have work early in the morning, many cannot wake up at such a time and fear missing the prayer, and the same applies to students who sleep early, and many others like them. So there is no harm in combining to remove hardship.
Summary
It is better to pray each prayer at its time or at the estimated time. Whoever has a need or an excuse may combine them, and they should not be criticised for doing so.
And Allah knows best.
Director, The Bridge of Wisdom Limited (Sharia Consultancy)DM-2026-003 · 2 October 2026
About the mufti
- Holds ijazahs (formal licences) to issue fatwas and in comparative fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence).
- Postgraduate studies in Usul al-Fiqh (principles of Islamic jurisprudence).
- Member of the Sharia Committee of the Halal Food Council of Europe (HFCE).
- Adviser and mufti to a number of institutions across the Muslim world.
- Scholarly reviewer and editor (muhaqqiq) of books for a number of publishing houses.
- Imam, khatib and lecturer, formerly in Egypt, Malaysia and Indonesia, and currently in the United Kingdom.
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