Hajj 2019: Saudi introduces e-visa system

Intending pilgrims to this year’s hajj in Saudi Arabia will no longer have to undergo any physical screening in Saudi embassies.

This is in line with the new e-visa system Saudi Arabian authorities have introduced to simplify visa processing for 2019 Hajj season.

This was revealed in a statement released by Fatima Sanda Usara, head, Public Affairs Unit of the National Hajj Commission (NAHCON).

“Under this arrangement, the intending pilgrim’s visa will spontaneously be administered upon completion of Hajj fare payment on the e-portal. The next move is for the visa applicant to proceed to a café to print out the visa document in wait for his/her scheduled flight for the pilgrimage,” the statement read.

With respect to Nigerian pilgrims, the statements said, respective state pilgrims’ board will print out the visas on behalf of the pilgrims, adding that the “procedure has been stress-free thus far, with a considerable number of visas already processed.”

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Moreover, visas are administered within hours of making full payments, thereby creating a leeway for intending pilgrims to pay and get their visas within hours and well ahead of the deadline of July 15.

NAHCON has however cautioned intending pilgrims to safeguard their slips, which is in paper form, along with other travel documents, to forestall its getting missing or destroyed.

It warned that Saudi Arabian authorities will not honour entry of anyone with incomplete travel documents into the kingdom for the season.