Question Summary:
From an islamic point of view (Hadeeth or Quraan), who takes care of the wedding expenses?

Question Detail:

From an islamic point of view (Hadeeth or Quraan), who takes care of the wedding expenses?

According to my understanding: in the KZN province  the girl's family takes care of the expenses for the wedding.. while in the cape province the boys family takes care of expenses for the wedding???
Note: I know that in islam the boys party takes care of the expenses of the Walima!!!

Answer :

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Assalaamu `alaykum waRahmatullahi Wabarakatuh
The only compulsory expense in performing a Nikah is mehr (dowry). Thereafter, the husband must maintain his wife. There are no other compulsory expenses in Nikah. Walima is sunnah. That too is according to the husband’s financial means. Most of the walima’s of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) were simple. Whatever was available as presented to whoever was present at the walima. There was no special preparation of walima food.
Today, nikah had become an expensive issue. Costs are incurred in engagements, purchasing jewellery, wedding gowns, pre-marriage parties, mehndi parties, hiring halls and special catering services. This is apart from the overseas Dubai etc wedding shopping to match the colour and shape of the toothpick with the table cloth. Thousands are squandered in this waste.
Unfortunately, what was supposed to be a simple and straightforward issue has now become a complex one, hence the question of who should bear the expenses of a nikah.
Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wassalam) said, “The nikah with the most amount of barakah is the one with the least amount of expenses”.
And Allah knows best
Wassalam
Mufti Ebrahim Desai
Darul Iftaa, Madrassah In'aamiyyah