The Saudi Ministry of Hajj has announced that the upcoming Hajj pilgrimage, due in late June this year, will be open to all Muslims around the world, without any limits on the number of pilgrims.
This reverses the restrictions imposed in the past two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the ministry has set a minimum age of 12 years for performing the pilgrimage this year, and only Muslims holding Hajj visas or legal residency in Saudi Arabia will be allowed to participate in the rites.
To prioritize those who have not yet fulfilled the obligation of Hajj, the ministry has said that registration for the pilgrimage will begin on the electronic platform "Absher" from 15-10-1444AH, which is less than two months before the start of the Hajj season.
The ministry has also unveiled four packages for domestic pilgrims with costs ranging from SR3,984 to SR11,841, depending on the type of transport and departure city.
Muslims who are physically and financially capable of performing Hajj are required to do so at least once in a lifetime. Prior to the pandemic, around 2.5 million Muslims would attend Hajj annually.
The decision to allow all Muslims to perform Hajj this year is a positive sign that the world is slowly returning to normal after the pandemic
