Indonesia Finds 400,000 Invalid Records in Hajj Queue

Maisah

September 16, 2026

Data checks could cut Indonesia’s average Hajj waiting period to just 14-15 years.

Photo by Nemuel Sereti

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400,000 invalid records found in Indonesia’s 5.7 million Hajj queue
Wrong data throws off the waiting period calculation
Real wait time could fall to 14-15 years once fixed

Indonesia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah found close to 400,000 invalid records while checking the national Hajj queue, which holds about 5.7 million entries in total. Deputy Minister of Hajj and Umrah Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak shared the finding after a prayer and dhikr event at the Ministry’s office in Jakarta on Monday, September 14, 2026.

What the Data Check Found

Dahnil said officials are still working through the queue to clean up the records. “There are about 400,000 that are invalid,” he said. The wrong entries affect how the Ministry works out the waiting period, so it is now collecting more detailed data to confirm the true number of pilgrims still in the queue.

Waiting Period May Drop to 14-15 Years

Before Indonesia had a standalone Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, the national queue ran up to 49 years, Dahnil said. After the data clean-up work so far, the administrative average has already come down to about 26 years.

He said this 26-year figure still relies on administrative data alone. Once officials finish checking and updating the records, the real wait time for pilgrims is expected to be much shorter — averaging around 14-15 years, based on presidential instructions to shorten the queue.

Dahnil said the push to shorten the queue does not stop at fixing data. The Ministry also plans to improve how it manages Hajj administration and finances, to protect the rights of pilgrims who have already performed Hajj and those still waiting to go.

He said the Ministry wants changes to the Hajj Finance Law, which would give the government more room to shorten the waiting period further. He added that money management during the waiting period needs to be transparent, so pilgrims get clear, accurate information about the funds held in their accounts while they wait.

Maisah

Maisah is a Muslimah and journalist for The Islamic Information based in Indonesia. Studying Law at Maritime University of Raja Ali Haji. She believes in the power of words and hopes that her articles will positively impact all of her readers.