What to Do When Making an Early Shabbos

When making an early Shabbos one should remember the following;
1. It is most preferable to daven Mincha before “Plag Hamincha” and Maariv after the Plag. (1)
2. Men must repeat Krias Shema after it is night. (2)
3. One should try to stretch the meal to eat at least a k’zayis of bread after dark. (3)
4. It is permitted for a Jew who has (individually – as opposed to a whole community) accepted an early Shabbos to directly ask a Jew who has not yet accepted Shabbos (and certainly a non-jew) to perform a melacha on his behalf, except for one’s own wife. (4)
5. Members of a household are independent of each other. Therefore if the husband accepted Shabbos early for convenience sake (and not for the Mitzva of Tosafos Shabbos) the wife may light candles until Shkiah. (However, there are other opinions that disagree). Likewise, when the wife lights candles early this does not require her husband, sons, or even daughters to accept Shabbos early. (5)

(1) SA w/Mishnah Brurah 233:5 MB11, SA 267:3 see Biur Halacha
(2) SA w/Mishnah Brurah 235:1 MB5,6,7, SA w/ Mishnah Brurah 267:6
(3) SA w/Mishnah Brurah 267:5
(4) SA w/Mishnah Brurah 263:17
(5) Igros Moshe 3:38, SA 263:10
See also Sefer 39 Melochos

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