What is the ruling on the suitor sitting alone with the woman he intends to marry?

Question:
Shaykh Salih, some people go to great lengths in this matter. The sitting of the suitor with the woman he intends to marry may last a long time, accompanied by the seclusion you have warned against. Shaykh Salih, I hope you will speak on this matter. May Allah reward you with good.

Answer:
Going to such lengths is forbidden. It is not permissible for a suitor who has not concluded a marriage contract with the woman he intends to marry to be alone with her or to travel with her, because she remains a stranger to him and is not lawful for him except through a valid Islamic contract that meets the conditions and pillars.
The mere engagement does not permit him any of this: no seclusion, no enjoyment, and no looking at what is not permissible to look at, because they remain strangers to one another. As for the customs of people, or the actions of the ignorant and those who imitate the disbelievers, all of this is invalid and not permissible. One must return to the ruling of Islam and the ruling of the Shari'ah in such matters. May Allah reward you with good, and may Allah reward you.