Everything you need to know about the Hajj this year

Muslims who wish to perform the Hajj in the year 1443 AH can begin applying for permits on Wednesday, April 27, 2022, according to the Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs—Department of Hajj and Umrah Affairs.

Registration is open until May 12, 2022, on the ministry's Hajj website, and more information is available by calling the hotline 132.

Saudi Arabia has announced that one million people from inside and outside the country will be allowed to undertake the Hajj this year, up from only a few thousand local pilgrims in the previous two years.

Due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, anyone under the age of 18 and over the age of 60 would not be permitted to undertake Hajj and Umrah this year, as was the case in 2021, according to the Saudi Ministry of Hajj and Umrah guidelines.

Additionally, those who have gotten both vaccine doses will be permitted to do Umrah and visit Mecca. To protect the safety of people performing Hajj and Umrah this year, all pilgrims must be completely vaccinated with a Covid-19 vaccine recognized by the Saudi government.

Pfizer-BioNTech, AstraZeneca, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson are among them.

Regardless of their 'immune' status, all pilgrims arriving in Saudi Arabia will be required to submit a negative PCR or antigen test report taken within 48 hours after departing the Kingdom.

Citizens and residents returning to Qatar after Umrah or Hajj in Saudi Arabia only need to take a PCR or antigen test 24 hours after arrival, but no PCR is necessary prior to landing.

Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage that takes place during the first ten days of the spiritual month of Dhu al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic lunar calendar. Umrah is a voluntary pilgrimage that Muslims can perform at any time of year, whereas Hajj is an annual Islamic pilgrimage that takes place during the first ten days of the spiritual month of Dhu al-Hijjah, the final month of the Islamic lunar calendar.

All Muslims who are able to perform the Hajj at least once in their lives are required to do so.

Prior to the virus, more than 2.5 million pilgrims from all over the world would travel to Mecca and Medina, Islam's two holiest cities, for a week-long pilgrimage.

According to government estimates, the annual Hajj and the year-round Umrah pilgrimage bring in roughly $12 billion to the Saudi kingdom each year.

But, in the last two years, that has altered. When the pandemic struck in early 2020, Saudi officials promptly imposed restrictions on inbound aircraft, preventing local and international pilgrims from entering the country.

In 2021, only a few fully vaccinated pilgrims were permitted to perform Hajj, with rigorous Covid-19 measures in place, including the wearing of masks at all times, social separation within pilgrims' living quarters, and a limitation of 100 persons per group.

Now, the government appears to be gradually opening up to foreigners and returning to pre-Covid norms.