This document aims to clarify the following:

• The number of companies required to obtain a license.

• The criteria for granting and renewing licenses for providing services to foreign pilgrims.

• The procedural steps that must be followed to grant or renew licenses.

• The Ministry conducted a scientific study with the assistance of a specialized consulting firm, which revealed that the minimum number of pilgrims that the company must serve should not be less than (70,000) pilgrims in order for the company or institution to fulfill all its obligations as determined by the Ministry of Hajj and achieve a reasonable profit margin. Assuming that the number of foreign pilgrims over the next five years will be in the range of 10-20 million pilgrims according to the developmental vision prepared for Mecca and Medina, the number of companies that should be licensed should be approximately 140-280 companies and institutions. Given that the current number of pilgrims is only six million pilgrims, and the projected number for the year 1438 AH is ten million, God willing, the process will start with the aforementioned minimum. If we take into account that (48) companies and institutions have had their licenses continuously since the start of this activity in the year 1422 AH due to their demonstrated efficiency and excellence in performance, and that the approval of His Royal Highness the Crown Prince, Deputy Prime Minister, and Minister of Interior has been issued to renew their licenses for the upcoming period, the remaining number that should be licensed through this competition is approximately (100) companies and institutions, for the following reasons:

  • • If the number of companies falls below this, it may lead to overburdening the companies with a number of pilgrims exceeding their capabilities, thus resulting in negative behaviors such as selling visas and fictitious payments.

  • • If the number of companies exceeds this, it may lead to reduced returns for the companies and their inability to meet the requirements for proper operation, performance control, and service to the pilgrims, failing to achieve the desired economic feasibility and benefits, thus reverting to the negatives mentioned in the previous paragraph.

  • The Ministry of Hajj has ensured that the criteria for preference are clear and systematic, free from personal judgments, and conducted through computerized systems available via the internet. In the event that the number of pilgrims exceeds ten million pilgrims per year, or if some companies exit the service permanently, the Ministry of Hajj will gradually increase the number of companies based on the results of this competition.

• A. The Ministry announces the opening of the reception of applications for granting and renewing licenses for providing services to pilgrims. Those interested should refer to the Ministry at the following address:

  • Makkah Al-Mukarramah. Al-Shasha. Prince Majid bin Abdulaziz Street. Ministry of Hajj Building. Procurement Department. Sixth Floor - Makkah Al-Mukarramah, Al-Hamra District, Ministry of Hajj and Umrah Building (8), Third Floor, General Administration of Companies to start the procedures.

• B. One of the registered individuals in the Commercial Register of the company or institution applying for the license must visit the relevant Ministry employee at the address mentioned above and provide a copy of the Commercial Register and a copy of the national ID for themselves and for the individuals listed in the Commercial Register, along with the originals for verification.

• C. The relevant Ministry of Hajj employee will access the application prepared for this purpose, which is Web Based: [email protected]

• And will do the following:

  • • Register the data of the establishment submitting the application, its commercial activity, as well as entering the personal data of the names listed in the Commercial Register, and the mobile number of the company representative who visited.

  • • Sell the competition brochure and provide the applicant with the official document to receive the amount for the brochure.

  • • Approve the company representative who visited as the main authorized person in the system, with full powers of the company applying for the license in the system, including the delegation of others.

  • • When printing the document, the system will automatically send an activation code to the mobile phone of the company representative to be used to complete the remaining procedures and enter the necessary data according to the criteria for preference.

• D. The authorized person in the system from the company or institution will log into the system by entering the following data:

  • • Commercial Register Number.

  • • National ID Number.

  • • Activation Code.

• E. After logging into the system, the authorized person will complete the registration data, which includes:

  • • Creating a personal username and password.

  • • Adding other users and uploading copies of their national IDs.

  • • Entering the contact information for the company or institution.

  • • Entering any other required data about the establishment.

• F. A single person is not allowed to apply for more than one company or institution.

• G. Entering the data for the preference criteria:

  • • Financial solvency with the upload of supporting documents.

  • • Administrative efficiency with the upload of supporting documents.

  • • Experience in the field of work with the upload of supporting documents.

  • • The system will calculate discounts for those who have previously worked in the field of Umrah.

• H. The Ministry allows a period of one month from the date of the announcement of the opening of registration to complete the entries.

• I. After the specified period for entering data ends, the preference process will be executed electronically among the applicants based on the entered data, noting that the entered data for preference cannot be changed and must be adhered to throughout the validity period of the license.

• J. The result of the preference will be displayed and will be preliminary until the originals of all supporting documents for the entered data are submitted, meaning that all supporting documents uploaded as attachments during the entry of preference criteria must be submitted for verification.

• K. The Ministry allows a period of three months from the date of the announcement of the preliminary result to submit all original documents proving compliance with the obligations, and if not submitted during this period, the nomination will be canceled and replaced by the next in the list.

• L. The data entered in the system must match the data in the documents, and in case of detecting the entry of data that contradicts the data in the submitted originals, the Ministry has the right to cancel the application, and the next in the list will take its place.

• 1. Reception (Ministry Employee):

  • • Approval of the authorized person based on the law.

  • • Sale of the brochure.

  • • Receipt of a copy of the Commercial Register and a copy of the applicant's ID.

  • • Entering the data along with the applicant's mobile number and issuing the activation code.

  • • Verifying the receipt of the verification code on the authorized person's mobile.

• 2. Registration (Applicant):

  • • Creating a username and password for the authorized person to access the system by entering the Commercial Register number + ID number + activation code.

  • • Completing the entry of the required data about the company or institution, and the data for the selection criteria.

  • • Registering other users for the system.

  • • The data entry period is one month from the date of opening the registration.

  • • The entered data for negotiation will be executed throughout the validity period of the license and no modifications or changes are allowed.

• 3. Application of Selection Criteria (Law):

  • Financial solvency.

  • • Administrative efficiency.

  • • Previous experiences.

  • • Violations and deductions.

  • • General controls.

• 4. Results:

  • • The system performs the necessary calculations and determines the names of the candidates provisionally accepted.

  • • Each of them is required to submit the original documents for verification.

  • • The period for submitting the originals is three months from the date of announcing the preliminary results.

  • • If the information entered for selection differs from the data in the submitted originals, the claim will be canceled, and the next in the list will be considered.