Organizing the arrival of pilgrims coming through tourist companies

The set of activities and procedures that are carried out for organizing the individual pilgrims arriving through tourist companies and agencies or charity societies, pursuant to the stipulations organizing such activities, the most important being:

- That the agencies, companies or societies that organize Hajj trips are licensed to practice such activity in their respective countries.

- That the number of pilgrims for each travel agency, company or society shall be no less than fifty pilgrims.

- That the travel agency, company or society shall, not later than the month of Sha'ban of each year, apply for a visa to the embassy or consulate of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for their representatives to travel to the Kingdom for the purpose of carrying out the following:

Concluding contracts for the accommodation of pilgrims and having such contracts certified by the relevant National Tawafa Establishment in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and by the National Guides Establishment in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, and attested by the Ministry of Pilgrimage. As to companies, agencies and societies that conclude contracts for accommodation of their pilgrims at hotels, such contracts shall be certified by the Ministry of Commerce.

Concluding the service contract at the Holy sites with the appropriate National Tawafa Establishment in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and a service contract with the National Guides Establishment in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah.

Concluding a contract for the transport of pilgrims with the General Cars Syndicate between the Hajj cities (Makkah Al-Mukarramah - Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah - Jeddah ) and the Holy Sites.

Approaching the Ministry of Pilgrimage for obtaining a letter to the Saudi embassy or consulate indicating that the company, agency or society has completed all the requirements for the granting of visas according to the stipulated number of pilgrims.

The Ministry is seeking further coordination with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for realizing full compliance with the stipulations of the arrival of individual pilgrims and for dealing with individual pilgrims in whose countries there are no tourist companies or agencies for organizing Hajj trips. This action is taken in view of the fact that some tourist companies and agencies organize the arrival of pilgrims from several countries without having any evidence that they are legitimate companies or agencies accredited and licensed to have branches in countries other than the original countries that had issued the license to them. Some tourist companies and agencies organize the arrival of pilgrims without a designated ceiling for the number of pilgrims the arrival of whom the companies or agencies are allowed to organize. In addition, some representatives of tourist companies make previous agreements with landlords to cancel the accommodation contracts concluded with them after the companies would have received the visas from the Saudi embassies for their pilgrims.