The government has extended the hajj registration deadline for 2024 until December 31 in a bid to avoid last time hassle. The Ministry of Religious Affairs issued a notice signed by assistant secretary of the Ministry Tafiqul Islam on Sunday. According to the notice, the list of intending devotees should be sent to the Saudi government by January 7 and if the authorities don’t receive the final list, it will be difficult to get tent in Mina at a convenient place. HAAB announces private hajj package for 2024; minimum cost set at Tk 5.89 lakh To avoid such hassle, the Religious Affairs Ministry decided to extend the deadline for hajj registration. The server for the registration will automatically be stopped once the registration quota is finished, it added. Those who want to perform Hajj, have to deposit Tk 2.05 lakh for registration and the rest need to be deposited by February 29, 2024. HAAB writes to PM for refixing hajj airfare If any devotee fails to perform hajj then the money deposited for registration purposes will not be returned. Hajj-2024 will be held on 9th day of Zilhaj (June 16) depending on moon sighting. Like this year, a total of 1,27,198 devotees can perform hajj next year and of them, 10,198 can perform hajj under government management while the rest under private management. The government on November 2 announced the Hajj packages for 2024, reducing the cost by Tk 92,450. Hajj packages for 2024 to be cheaper Intending pilgrims have to pay Tk 5,78,840 under general package, and Tk 9,36,320 under special package. The hajj registration process began on November 15.

The Religious Affairs Ministry on Tuesday opened its server for one day for hajj registration as per the special request of the hajj pilgrims and Hajj Agencies Association of Bangladesh (Haab). Those who failed to complete their registration for going hajj this year will avail the opportunity, said a notice issued by the Religious Affairs Ministry on April 20. According to the notice, the serial number of the registration under both government and private management was opened for today and both the managements have the opportunity to create a new pre-registration facility for the pilgrims. The server will be closed automatically once the registration quota is fulfilled, it said. This will be the last time and there will be no extension for registration. On March 30, the government extended the registration deadline for hajj until April 5 in a bid to fulfill the registration quota. On January 9, the government signed an agreement with Saudi Arabia over hajj. According to the agreement, 15,000 people will be able to go to hajj under government management while 112,198 can go under private management. Also read: Hajj registration deadline extended again till April 5 Of these, 9,935 and 108,351 pilgrims have already registered under the government and the private management system respectively. This year, 70 percent Bangladeshi pilgrims will go through Jeddah Airport while the rest 30 percent will go through Madinah Airport. Meanwhile, the government reduced the cost of hajj packages under both public and private managements by Tk11,725 as Saudi Arabia has reduced a service charge for the intending pilgrims worldwide. Pilgrims who will perform hajj under the government management have to pay Tk 6, 71,290 each to perform hajj this year after deduction of Tk 11,725. Besides, those who will go under private management have to pay Tk 6, 60,893 each after deduction of the amount.

The registration process for this year's Hajj will start from May 16, the ministry of religious affairs has said. Pilgrims, who want to perform the holy Hajj in Saudi Arabia, after a Covid-induced hiatus of two years, will have to complete the registration process by May 18, which is also the payment deadline. Also read: HAAB announces private Hajj package for 2022, Minimum cost fixed at 4,63,000 Pilgrims need to possess a passport with at least seven months validity (till January 4, 2023) for completing the registration process, the ministry said. If a pilgrim is unable to go to Saudi Arabia for Hajj post-registration, he will be refunded the plane fare and the cost allocated for food. However, if any Haji cancels his trip after confirmation of the plane ticket, he will not get back the airfare. Also read: Hajj pilgrims must submit Covid-negative report before journey Each pilgrim will have to carry an additional 810 Saudi Riyal with them for sacrificial purposes, according to the ministry.

Hajj is the largest global conference as well as an important religious event for Muslims. Every year, a considerable number of Bangladeshi Muslims join the Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia. Due to the Corona outbreak, since 2020, this international religious conference has been restricted to Saudi pilgrims only. This year, preparations for the Hajj can be made by following the policy formulated by the Saudi Hajj Authority with due diligence. Let's get to know how can Bangladeshi citizens register for Hajj online. Hajj registration procedure In Bangladesh, every year the Hajj registration is implemented under the authorization of Government and non-Government institutions. The most important thing in both media is pre-registration. The Hajj and Umrah authority in Saudi Arabia sets a quota for Hajj in all countries of the world each year. These quotas are allocated on the basis of capacity for the provision of emergency services in Mecca-Medina. Read: Hajj management in 2022 to be tech-based: State Minister The number of applications often exceeds the quota. This is why the Ministry of Hajj in Bangladesh has introduced the pre-registration system in line with the Saudi e-Hajj system. Pre-registered people are sent to Hajj every year according to the quota. In this case, the waiting people have to go for Hajj next year. Online Hajj pre-registration procedure in Bangladesh Candidates will be able to pre-register online through the website https://prp.pilgrimdb.org/pilgrim-reg-request/create. The pre-registration system of the Hajj pilgrims is under the Ministry of Religious Affairs. The steps required for this are mentioned below: → Applications can be made to the following institutions for pre-registration of Hajj pilgrimage under government supervision. Read How to Get E-Passport in Bangladesh: Things you need to know 1. Union Digital Service Center (UDC) 2. Office of the Deputy Commissioner 3. Office of the Islamic Foundation 4. Director, Hajj Office, Ashkona, Dhaka For the pre-registration with non-government media, the candidates have to go to the legitimate Hajj agencies approved by the Ministry of Religious Affairs. Visit the following website to check out the list of Bangladesh Government approved Hajj Agencies: https://www.hajj.gov.bd/bn/agency-list-by-category-and-year/?type=list-of-hajj-agencies-2020 Read Visa Free Country List for Bangladeshi Passport Holders in 2021 → First, the hajj aspirants need to log in accounts in their chosen agency through respective Gmail IDs.

The pre-registration of intending pilgrims for performing the next year’s Hajj will be continued till the end of the year.

Intending hajj pilgrims who had deposited registration money to perform hajj under government or private management and now want to withdraw their money have to apply after July 12.

The government has once again extended the deadline for hajj registration until April 30 considering the outbreak of coronavirus.