RIYADH: Muslims traveling outside Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah will reach the end of this season on May 31.
Using the Gregorian calendar, May 31 corresponds to Shawwal 30 in the current Islamic calendar, the month following Ramadan and the month that marks the end of the Holy Month of Ramadan.
“In coordination with the Saudi Foreign Ministry, the deadline for applying to obtain an Umrah visa is Shawwal 15.”
Saudi foreign ministry said
Foreign visitors can apply for Umrah visas online through approved platforms. They will be notified via official channels of dates for registering and submitting for this year’s Hajj in due course.
For the first time in two years, Hajj pilgrims worldwide will visit the Kingdom. Last year’s Hajj was restricted to 60,000 pilgrims, all from Saudi Arabia, due to the Coronavirus pandemic. At the same time, at the peak of the global health crisis in 2020, just 1,000 worshippers participated in the Hajj.
According to the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, the Kingdom plans on increasing the number of pilgrims taking part in the Hajj pilgrimage to 1 million this year to fulfill the religious obligations of Muslims worldwide.
Although the ministry mentioned that government health and safety considerations would determine how many people can visit Makkah’s Grand Mosque and Madinah’s Prophet’s Mosque.
According to the ministry, pilgrims performing the Hajj must follow preventive measures, including being fully immunized against COVID-19 via an approved vaccination for those under 65, according to the Gregorian calendar.
