ISLAMABAD: A glimmer of hope surfaced on Wednesday for approximately 67,000 Pakistani pilgrims at risk of missing Hajj 2025 and losing their payments, after private Hajj Group Organizers (HGOs) failed to meet a crucial deadline set by Saudi authorities.
During a National Assembly committee briefing, officials assured that funds transferred through official channels could be refunded, and efforts were still underway to enable the affected pilgrims to perform Hajj.
Missed Deadline and Fund Mismanagement
The crisis unfolded when funds collected from intending pilgrims were mistakenly deposited into an incorrect account, causing HOAP (Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan) members to miss the Saudi deadline of February 14 for submitting pilgrim details.
Secretary for Religious Affairs Dr. Atta ur Rehman informed the panel that under new Saudi guidelines, HGOs with quotas under 2,000 were no longer permitted. Consequently, 904 small HGOs were consolidated into 45 larger clusters.
The February 14 deadline required a 25% deposit of the total Hajj expenditure. Only 13,620 individuals who had completed their payments by then were accepted. Following diplomatic intervention, Saudi authorities reopened the portal for 48 hours, allowing another 10,000 pilgrims to register.
Payment Processing Challenges
According to Dr. Rehman, private Hajj scheme payments must be routed through the Director General (DG) Hajj to designated Saudi accounts. While the DG successfully transferred some funds, a $300,000 cap per transaction led to delays that prevented several HGOs from completing their payments in time.
Despite this, Pakistani authorities—spearheaded by Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar—secured additional approval for 10,000 pilgrims. However, only Saudi companies and operators had access to the required data, which was collected on a first-come, first-serve basis by HOAP.
Saudi authorities then asked for more names to validate against their requirements. Pilgrims with at least 14,000 riyals in their accounts were eligible. A list of 44,000 names was submitted, with HOAP verifying the order of submission.
Uncertainty Over Informal Funds
The Secretary confirmed that refunds will be issued for funds sent through official channels. However, he expressed doubt regarding the recoverability of payments routed outside the approved system, leaving some pilgrims in financial limbo.
Authorities continue to explore solutions to ensure the pilgrimage can still be made possible for those affected.
