Saudi Arabia will begin receiving foreign Umrah pilgrimage requests as of August 9 for vaccinated pilgrims.
The move is set to raise the capacity of pilgrims to 2 million from 60,000 per month, according to state news agency Saudi Press Agency.
Saudi Arabia to Increase Number of Umrah Performers to Two Million Per Month from August 9https://t.co/oQYkrL5xCf#SPAGOV
— SPAENG (@Spa_Eng) August 7, 2021
The decision comes after about a year and a half of not receiving overseas worshippers due to disruptions brought by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Deputy Minister of Hajj and Umrah stated that pilgrims arriving from within the Kingdom and from abroad will have to provide authorised Covid-19 vaccination certificates.
Vaccinated pilgrims arriving from countries that are included on Saudi Arabia’s entry-ban list will have to be institutionally quarantined upon arrival, the statement noted.
Umrah, which refers to the Islamic pilgrimage to Makkah that can be undertaken at any time of year, was reopened to domestic worshippers in October last year after operations were temporarily halted upon the outbreak of the pandemic.
Since the suspension of Umrah was lifted, over 13m people have visited the mosques.
The holy sites are also a key revenue earner for the kingdom, whose economy has been hit by a coronavirus-driven collapse in world demand for oil.
An economic reform plan of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman aims to increase Umrah and Hajj capacity to 30m pilgrims annually and generate SAR50bn ($13.32bn) of revenues by 2030.
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