Muslim pilgrims no longer pay Umrah fee
PRAYERS have been answered as Muslims who wish to travel for Umrah will not have to pay the surcharge of 2 000 Saudi riyals.
The SA Muslim Travel Association (Samta) yesterday announced that the Saudi Arabian visa portal application system had been changed to allow pilgrims to travel once an Islamic calendar year without paying the fee, just over R7 500.
Only those travelling for a subsequent time during the calendar year would have to pay the fee.
Samta chief, Imtiaz Malek of Durban, welcomed the announcement by the Saudi Authorities and said the latest concessions would be well received by the Muslim community. The concession was made after protracted discussions with the Department of International Relations in Pretoria and their counterparts in Saudi Arabia.
He said if a pilgrim had paid the fee for a Hijri calendar year and wished to travel again during the same calendar year, then the fee would not be applicable the second time. However, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ fee would still apply to every visa application.