Question: Can missed prayers from past years be made up (qaḍāʾ)?
Answer:
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ، الْـحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ، وَالصَّلَاةُ وَالسَّلَامُ عَلَى أَشْرَفِ الْأَنْبِيَاءِ وَالْمُرْسَلِينَ، نَبِيِّنَا مُحَمَّدٍ، وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ، وَمَنْ تَبِعَهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ إِلَى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ.
The obligation to make up missed prayers is established by the statement of the Prophet ﷺ:
“مَنْ نَسِيَ صَلَاةً فَلْيُصَلِّهَا إِذَا ذَكَرَهَا، لَا كَفَّارَةَ لَهَا إِلَّا ذَٰلِكَ”
“Whoever forgets a prayer, let him pray it when he remembers it. There is no expiation for it other than that.” (Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī and Muslim)
This ḥadīth forms the basis for the obligation of qaḍāʾ. The ruling applies even more so to one who missed prayers due to negligence or sin, as forgetfulness is a lesser cause.
All four madhāhib—Ḥanafī, Mālikī, Shāfiʿī, and Ḥanbalī—hold that it is obligatory to make up missed prayers, regardless of how many years have passed. Even if someone abandoned prayer intentionally, they remain liable until they complete them.
Some later opinions suggest that one who abandoned prayer entirely should repent and begin anew without qaḍāʾ, but this view contradicts the stronger legal consensus that past obligations do not fall away due to neglect.
Therefore, anyone who has missed prayers over the years must make a sincere intention of repentance, begin recording what is owed to the best of their knowledge, and consistently make them up alongside their regular prayers until completed.
وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ.