Hajj pilgrims must submit Covid-negative report before journey

Hajj pilgrims will have to submit Covid-19 negative report – done 72 hours before their journey to Saudi Arabia this year.

Also, they must carry a Covid vaccination certificate, the Religious Affairs Ministry said in a notification Friday.

Hajj pilgrims will have to carry multiple copies of the vaccine certificate as they embark on the pilgrimage to Mecca.

People aged below 65 years will be eligible to perform the Hajj in 2022.

If any registered pilgrim aged above 65 years in 2020 wants to make the pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia, he or she will get priority in zero quotas.

Pilgrims registered under all government and private management in 2020 can depart for the Kingdom to perform Hajj this year.

People registered under government management in 2020 will have to complete their package transfer from any registration centre within three working days after the announcement of the Hajj package for 2022.

To confirm their registration, pilgrims under both government and private management will have to verify the validity of their passports – valid until at least 4 January, 2023.

No medicine can be carried without a prescription, the ministry said.

Performing Hajj is one of the five pillars of Islam and able-bodied Muslims are obliged to perform it at least once in their lifetime.

The five-day Hajj pilgrimage takes place from the eighth to the 12th of Dhul Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

In 2022, Hajj will be observed from 7-12 July.