• The terms mentioned in this regulation refer to the meanings specified next to each of them unless the context requires otherwise, and words in the singular form also carry the plural form whenever the text requires and vice versa.

• Ministry: Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.

• Minister: Minister of Hajj and Umrah.

• Licensee: Institutions or companies that have obtained a license to practice domestic pilgrim services from the Ministry.

• Establishment: Any institution or company that has applied for a license to provide domestic pilgrim services.

• Allocation: Designating sites for licensees who have obtained seasonal approval, for the purpose of housing pilgrims contracted with them in Mina and Arafat.

• Seasonal Approval: Approval issued by the Ministry for licensees who have met the conditions, regulations, and standards set by the Ministry for the purpose of allowing service provision in each Hajj season.

• Electronic Pathway: An electronic platform concerned with managing all operations related to domestic pilgrim services.

• Domestic Pilgrims: Citizens and residents with legal residency in the country.

• Law: Law of Domestic Pilgrim Services issued by the esteemed Council of Ministers decision No. (263) dated 1426/10/26 AH and approved by the noble Royal Decree No. M/58 on 1426/10/28 AH

• Regulation: Implementing Regulation of the Law of Domestic Pilgrim Services.

• Committee for Reviewing New and Renewal License Applications: Formed from the competent administration and those deemed necessary by the Minister of Hajj from other administrations in the Ministry, responsible for examining and studying new applications and renewal applications for licenses, deciding on them, and determining the number of pilgrims that the license applicant can serve based on Article Five of the Law.

• Committee for Reviewing Violations: Formed from members representing the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, and Ministry of Commerce as stipulated in paragraph No. (1) of Article No. (19) of the Law to review violations of domestic pilgrim companies and institutions.

• Hajj Permit: Permission issued by the concerned authorities approving citizens and residents with legal residency to perform Hajj rituals.

• Services: What is provided to the pilgrim by the licensee according to what is agreed upon between them in the unified contract.

• Unified Contract: The agreement document between the pilgrim and the licensee, including the details of services, their levels, and the prices agreed upon between the parties.

• First: Conditions for Granting and Renewing the License:

• The Ministry sets the conditions for granting and renewing the license, taking into account the following:

  • 1. Determining the material, operational, and administrative capabilities of the establishment necessary to provide the service.

  • 2. Administrative work in the establishment is restricted to Saudis only.

• Second: Conditions for the Licensee:

  • 1. The establishment must be Saudi.

  • 2. The establishment must have a valid commercial registration.

  • 3. The manager of the establishment must not have had a legal judgment issued against him in a crime involving dishonor or breach of trust, and his reputation must not have been restored.

  • 4. He must not be a shareholder or partner in any licensed domestic pilgrim service companies or the owner of a licensed individual institution providing domestic pilgrim services, except for those who have inherited it.

  • 5. He must not be among those who have previously been subject to a legal penalty resulting in the cancellation of their license to practice domestic pilgrim services, and this judgment applies when the ownership of the institution is transferred.

  • 6. It is prohibited for one person to manage two establishments at the same time.
    

• 1- License applications are submitted to the competent department at the Ministry, which is responsible for registering all applications and providing applicants with proof of acceptance after ensuring that the required conditions stipulated in the first and second paragraphs of Article Two are met.

• 2- Before presenting to the committee stipulated in Article (Five) of the Law, the Ministry submits lists of new and renewal license applicants to the Ministry of Interior to ensure their records are free of any remarks according to the laws, regulations, and instructions, and to provide the Ministry with remarks within (thirty) days from the date of submission. The committee has the discretion to approve or deny the granting and renewal of licenses according to the legal requirements.

• 3- The conditions mentioned in paragraphs (4-5) of section (Second) of Article Two of the Regulation apply to new partners required to be added to the company.

• A committee is formed in the Ministry by ministerial decision, with its members from the administration responsible for issuing licenses. This committee is tasked with examining and studying new applications and renewal requests for licenses, deciding on them, and determining the scope of the number of pilgrims that the license applicant can serve in light of the available capacity in the holy sites, as well as his financial, administrative, and operational capabilities, and his performance in previous years concerning renewal requests.

The competent administration at the Ministry is responsible for issuing licenses after the Minister approves the decisions of the Committee as stipulated in the previous article. The duration of the license is five seasons, renewable, provided that the license includes the name of the licensee, their main address, and the number of pilgrims they are authorized to serve.

• First: The Ministry sets the conditions and regulations for issuing the seasonal approval and the number of pilgrims to be served during the season, based on the financial, administrative, and operational capabilities of the licensed establishments applying. The Ministry also sets the criteria for preference among these establishments to obtain approval.

• Second: After the issuance of the seasonal approval, the licensed establishment provides a bank guarantee according to the following conditions:

  • 1. It must be issued by one of the local banks in favor of the Ministry.

  • 2. It must not be conditional.

  • 3. It must be in its name as recorded in the Commercial Register.

  • 4. Its duration must not be less than one year in favor of the Ministry.

  • 5. It must not be less than three hundred and not more than six hundred riyals per pilgrim according to the number licensed to be served during the season as determined by the competent administration.

• Third: It is permissible to provide 30% of the guarantee value, provided that the remaining percentage is completed after allocation.

• The competent administration allocates sites in the areas of Mina and Arafat from the spaces designated for domestic pilgrims to those who have obtained the seasonal approval from the ministry to provide the service from companies and institutions that have valid licenses, equivalent to a specified percentage of the licensed number as a maximum according to the following regulations and standards:

  • 1- Administrative structure.

  • 2- Level of seasonal service performance for the previous season.

  • 3- Evaluation of the licensee's performance in the last five seasons in which the service was actually provided in terms of penalties.

  • 4- The ministry sets the conditions and regulations for allocating service provision sites in the areas of Mina and Arafat.

  • 5- In case of a tie in points, the principle of drawing lots is applied in the presence of the concerned parties. These sites must be handed over no later than the twenty-fifth day of the month of Dhu al-Qi'dah.

• After the competent authority announces the results of the allocation in Mina, the allocatee must adhere to the following:

  • 1- Pay the remaining amount of the bank guarantee stipulated in Article Six of the regulation according to the number licensed by the competent authority in accordance with the specified deadlines.

  • 2- Pay the rent for the allocated site in Mina according to the deadlines set by the competent authority no later than the twenty-third of the month of Dhu al-Qi'dah each year.

  • 3- In case of not desiring the allocated site, he must officially notify the competent authority either directly or by mail, and the competent authority must provide him with a receipt of the notice before the specified payment deadline.

  • 4- The allocation is considered void if the site rent is not paid within the specified deadlines.

  • 5- It is not permissible to waive the allocated sites to the licensee or rent them to others or part of them, and in case of relinquishing the entire site, he must submit an official request to relinquish the site no later than the twenty-eighth of the month of Dhu al-Qi'dah, and the competent authority must provide him with a receipt of the request.

  • 6- The licensee is not allowed to enable others to use the license granted to him to practice the service.

• Based on Article Four of the Law, the licensee is obligated to provide services of transportation, accommodation, catering, and care according to prevailing prices and the instructions and regulations issued by the Ministry for each Hajj season.