South African umrah pilgrims will have to fork out another R380 for umrah visas, after a price increase came into effect last week. According to the South Africa Muslim Travel Association (Samta), the Saudi Haj Ministry has increased the umrah visa fee by 100 riyals.
SAMTA secretary-general Ismail Olla said this applies to any umrah visa application. However, repeat visas remain unchanged at a cost of 2000 riyals, as set by the ministry.

“This has been communicated via the umrah operators in the Saudi Kingdom to all umrah operators around the world. It’s not just for South Africa,” he said.

Currently, umrah pilgrims must undergo biometric testing at the visa services company VFS Tasheel located in Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban. The process costs just over R100. Children under 5 and adults over 80 including those with finger amputations and skin diseases are exempted from biometrics.

Once this has been completed, the applicants can approach their umrah operator who then applies for an online visa. The operator will scan the passport, upload it to the ministry’s website and the document will be intercepted by ministry officials. The South African operator will make a payment to the Ministry of Hajj and receive a MOFA number, which allows the visa to be generated locally.

It is no longer required for the passport to go to the Saudi Embassy, unless you are foreigner residing in South Africa.

“This is essentially what umrah pilgrims are paying for,” said Olla.

Mu’tamireen must book with accredited umrah operators who are registered with umrah operating companies in Saudi Arabia.

Olla added that there are talks of a wristband which will contain the GPS coordinates and other information of the pilgrims. However, that has yet to be implemented. VOC