Apart from studies of the economic impact of large-scale male migration from Egypt to the Arab oil-producing countries, little scholary attention has been paid to this social phenomenon and the creation of a significant number of de facto female headed households. This article focuses on the influence of male migration on domestic budgeting and the position of wives within low- income Cairence households. The data, drawn from a sample of 42 households which includes income-earning women and non-wage earning women, indicate that less educated women and those who were primarily homemakers frequently managed to renegotiate a more favourable financial arrangement with their husbands during and after migration, and raise their status and decision- making power within the household. On the other hand, contrary to commonsense assumptions, educated and income-earning women were more likely to lose access to their husbands' income and to major decision-making opportunities, resulting in lowered status within the household. To protect their interests, many women in these groups appealed to the traditional and Islamic division of domestic responsiblities which hold men financially responsible for the family's upkeep.

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budget moslem lowest income group decision making Article human Egypt migration family life