ISLAMABAD – Pakistani authorities on Tuesday extended Hajj Application deadline, and submissions are accepted until December 10.
A notification shared by the Ministry of Religious Affairs extended the deadline for Hajj applications to December 10, after the original deadline.
Minister for Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, Chaudhry Salik Hussain confirmed that all applications received under government Hajj scheme have been approved so far. He said applications for the sponsorship scheme have been accepted without the need for a ballot.
For the next Hajj season, there are 179,210 spots for Pakistan, with an equal distribution of 89,605 seats each for the government and private Hajj schemes. Furthermore, 5,000 seats are reserved under the government scheme for sponsorship.
So far, around seventy thousand applications have already been submitted, all of which will be approved without a ballot. However, if the number of applications exceeds the available quota after December 3, a ballot will be held.
Applicants are required to pay an initial deposit of Rs2lac, with second installment of Rs4lac to be paid by those whose names are finalized. The remaining balance of the Hajj expenses need to be paid before travel.
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Ministry of Religious Affairs received only 47,000 Hajj applications, around half of the required number. A similar trend was seen in last year Hajj, with 69,438 applications submitted, leading to over 21,000 unfilled spots being returned to Saudi Arabia.
In 2023, despite receiving nearly 80,000 applications, almost 10,000 spots remained vacant.
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