Saudi Arabia.. Online Hajj registration to eliminate fake travel agencies
Saudi Arabia has created an electronic portal that allows those wishing to perform Hajj from many Western countries to register directly to obtain the necessary visas, in a move aimed at eliminating fake travel agencies.
An official in the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah told AFP that the new system applies to citizens of the United States, Canada, Europe, the United Kingdom and Australia.
A second official in the ministry stated that the new system aims to eliminate "fake travel agencies" that were "defrauding" pilgrims financially.
Saudi Arabia announced the new mechanism last week, and the registration process ended on Monday evening.
The authorities said the new mechanism aims to "ensure the quality of services and transparency in their costs".
The Saudi authorities will conduct a lottery among the applicants to select a number compatible with each country's quota of pilgrims.
The official admitted that some Muslims in these countries may have already registered with travel agencies, before the introduction of the new system, noting that they can still participate in the lottery, the date of which has not yet been announced, as long as their registration is through travel agencies already approved by the Kingdom's authorities.
The Hajj season is scheduled to begin in the first week of next July, and the first foreign pilgrims from outside the Kingdom have already arrived, for the first time since the outbreak of the Covid-19 epidemic.
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