Pakistan Opens Early Registration for Hajj 2026 Amid Visa Woes Faced by 70,000 Pilgrims in 2025
Islamabad – July 2, 2025 — Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs has officially opened the registration process for Hajj 2026, allowing intending pilgrims to apply through an online portal or any of the 15 designated banks until July 9, 2025. The ministry has urged citizens—especially overseas Pakistanis holding Pakistani passports—to register at the earliest.
This early move follows serious concerns over Hajj 2025, where around 70,000 Pakistanis failed to obtain visas despite Pakistan receiving a full quota of 179,210 pilgrims from Saudi Arabia. The quota was equally divided between the government and private Hajj schemes. While the government successfully utilized its share of over 88,000 pilgrims, a significant portion of the private sector’s allocation went unused due to delays in payments and incomplete registration processes by private operators.
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The Ministry clarified that registration is mandatory for anyone intending to perform Hajj from Pakistan in 2026. Once registered, applicants will have the option to select either the government or private Hajj scheme.
A statement from the ministry added:
“The costs of the Hajj package and other terms and conditions will be announced separately in accordance with the Hajj Policy 2026.”
The Hajj 2025 experience has triggered a call for urgent reforms. Last month, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to begin immediate preparations for Hajj 2026, with a special focus on overhauling the private Hajj scheme to avoid a repeat of this year’s mismanagement.
With preparations now underway and early registration open, authorities hope to streamline the process and ensure maximum utilization of the allocated quota in 2026.
