haj.gov.sa : Hajj & Umrah Procedures Saudi Arabia

Organization : The Ministry of Hajj Portal
Type of Facility : Hajj & Umrah Procedures
Country: Saudi Arabia

Website : https://haj.gov.sa/

Hajj and Umrah Procedures:

Pilgrims coming through official Hajj Missions (80 % of the international pilgrims)
Pilgrims coming through tourist companies (20% of the international pilgrims)

Related : Ministry of Foreign Affairs Family & Personal Visit Visa Application Saudi Arabia : www.statusin.org/9305.html

General Framework Of The Tasks Relevant To Organizing International Hajj Trips:
The following is a general framework of the tasks undertaken by the Ministry of Hajj to organize the work concerned with international Hajj trips:
** Organizing the work of tourist companies.
** Organizing the work of official Hajj Missions.
** Supervising the arrival of pilgrims via air, land, and sea ports.
** Supervising the grouping of pilgrims for final departure.
** Monitoring and conducting follow-ups.
** Investigating and imposing penalties.

First: Organizing The Work Of Tourist Companies In The Hajj Season
** Preparing tourist companies.
** Ratifying the service contract concluded with the Tawafa Establishment.

Ratifying the housing contract in Makkah Al-Mukarramah, with the Ministry making sure that the following documents are enclosed with the contract:
** The housing license from the Housing Committee or hotel license from the General Authority for Tourism and Antiquities.
** The insurance amount of 15% of the contract value.
** The bank guarantee of 50 Riyals for every pilgrim.

Ratifying the housing contract in Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah, with the Ministry making sure that the following documents are enclosed:
** The housing license from the Housing Committee or hotel license from the General Authority for Tourism and Antiquities.
** The insurance amount of 15% of the contract value.
** The bank guarantee of 50 Riyals for every pilgrim
** Ratifying the transportation contract
** Ratifying the contract of the United Agents Office

Approving the files of tourist companies, which takes place according to the following:
** A representative from the Tawafa Establishment, with which the company or establishment is affiliated, brings the file of the company or the establishment, containing the five basic contracts (the contract of housing in Makkah, contract of housing in Al-Madinah, contract of the United Agents office, contract of transportation, and the contract of service at the Sacred Sites) to the Ministry of Hajj.
** The Ministry checks the data of the file of the company or establishment with the data of the contracts entered in the database of the tourist companies and also with the data related to ratifying the housing contracts of the Hajj Missions.
** If the data matches, the Ministry approves the file of the company or establishment, and ratifies the housing contracts of the Missions.
** The administration prints the bar codes of the pilgrims of the company or the establishment.
** The Ministry sends the files of the companies to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to issue visas for the pilgrims.

Second: Organizing The Work Of Official Hajj Missions In The Hajj Season
** The Ministry of Hajj sends invitations for the official authorities concerned with the pilgrims’ affairs in the countries to meet His Highness the Minister of Hajj.
** During the meeting, the received comments on the Hajj Mission in the previous season and the arrangements relevant to the pilgrims in the following season are discussed.
** The delegation of the official Mission signs agreements with the bodies concerned with pilgrims’ services, such as the Tawafa Establishments, the National Guides Establishment in Al-Madinah, the Civil Aviation Authority, the Islamic Bank, the United Agents Office, food establishments, and the General Syndicate of Vehicles.
** The Mission signs the pilgrims’ housing contracts in Makkah Al-Mukarramah and Al-Madinah Al-Munawwarah.
** The Mission signs the final agreement with His Highness the Minister of Hajj based on the signature of all the previous agreements.
** The Mission sends a list of the tourist companies and establishments affiliated with it and the number of pilgrims assigned to each company.
** The Ministry makes sure that there are no comments on the tourist companies affiliated with the Hajj Missions and sends their data to the concerned bodies (the Tawafa Establishments, the National Guides Establishment, the General Syndicate of Vehicles, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and the Ministry branches).

Third: The Pilgrims’ Arrival Via Air, Land, And Sea Ports
The Ministry of Hajj supervises the pilgrims’ arrival via different ports of the Kingdom and ensures that the pilgrims who have completed their procedures and have been arranged into groups are dispatched to the Hajj cities easily. Also, the Ministry evaluates the performance of the different bodies which work in the field of pilgrims’ services to make sure that the pilgrims are able to perform their rituals satisfactorily and easily.

The following is a summary of the procedures for receiving the pilgrims upon their arrival at the port and dispatching them to the Hajj cities:
** When the pilgrim arrives at the port, the passport officer gives him a border number, and then enters the passport into the database.
** The official of the Enumeration and Distribution Authority gives the pilgrim a badge with the name of the Tawafa Establishment to which he belongs, if pilgrim has paid all the necessary expenses.
** The official of the United Agents Office collects the fees of the service and transportation from the pilgrims.
** The Tawafa Establishment specifies the field service office responsible for serving the pilgrim.
** The General Syndicate of Vehicles provides the buses necessary for transporting the pilgrims to the Hajj Cities, and the United Agents Office makes sure that the pilgrims’ luggage is loaded on the buses and also prepares the transportation report.
** Field service offices make sure that the pilgrims have arrived at their accommodations in the Hajj cities and serve them while they perform the rituals.

Fourth: Grouping The Pilgrims For Final Departure
** The field service office checks the availability of departure trips for the pilgrims departing by air or sea.
** The field service office checks the housing contracts of the pilgrims upon grouping them to travel from Makkah to Al-Madinah to visit the Prophet’s Mosque.
** The field service office coordinates with the General Syndicate of Vehicles to prepare the buses necessary for transporting the pilgrims.
** The field service office prepares the report of grouping the departing pilgrims.

Fifth: Monitoring And Conducting Follow-Ups
The Ministry of Hajj monitors and follows-up the performance of the Tawafa Establishments, the General Syndicate of Vehicles, the official Missions, and tourist companies during the Hajj season to make sure that the services are provided to the pilgrims according to the applicable rules, regulations, and concluded contracts. Also, the Ministry receives the pilgrims’ complaints, and controls and documents any violations.

Sixth: Conducting Investigations And Imposing Penalties
One of the main tasks undertaken by the Ministry is conducting investigations through the General Administration of Legal Affairs into the violations committed by the Tawafa Establishments. Also, investigations are conducted by certain committees concerning the violations committed by the tourist companies. Consequently, regulatory penalties are imposed upon them.

Conducting investigations:
The General Administration of Legal Affairs prepares legal briefs on the suits that have been investigated in preparation for referring them to the authorized person concerning the violations attributed to the Tawafa Establishments. Then they are referred to the Tawafa Disciplinary Board.

mposing penalties:
The Tawafa Disciplinary Board examines the complaints submitted by the international pilgrims against the Tawafa Establishments which were submitted by the General Administration of Legal Affairs. The committee has the choice of either dismissing the case, issuing a warning, or inflicting a penalty.

As for penalties imposed on the tourist companies, a special committee is formed for this matter.?