Pakistan starts Hajj refunds after Saudi revokes 67,000 private pilgrim slots

The hopes of tens of thousands of Pakistani pilgrims planning to perform Hajj under the private scheme are all but extinguished, as the federal government begins work on refunding their payments following a major procedural failure that led to the cancellation of their travel quota by Saudi Arabia.

Despite extensive diplomatic efforts, Islamabad has been unable to overturn the decision and is now left with no alternative but to initiate full refunds for aspiring pilgrims.

Pakistan’s Hajj arrangements are divided between a government-managed scheme and a private scheme operated by licensed tour companies. Both are supervised by the Ministry of Religious Affairs to ensure standards and facilitate smooth pilgrimages.

However, this year, the private scheme was thrown into disarray when Saudi authorities declined to confirm a quota for around 67,000 Pakistani pilgrims due to delays in payment transfers and contract finalizations.

As per an official notice issued in April, only 23,620 pilgrims will now be able to perform Hajj under the private scheme in 2025.

Govt scrambling to save face?

In the latest development, federal government sources told Nukta that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has directed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to ensure full refunds to the affected applicants. Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf has begun working on a formal mechanism to facilitate the return of payments.

Last Friday, PM Shehbaz held a key meeting with a delegation led by Maulana Ata-ur-Rehman, Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Religious Affairs. During the meeting, the prime minister instructed Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar to urgently engage his Saudi counterpart in a final effort to resolve the issue.

Sources said the premier chaired another high-level meeting on Thursday to review the crisis. Dar briefed Shehbaz on his latest contact with the Saudi foreign minister, saying the Kingdom had already extended multiple chances but Pakistan failed to act in time.

“The Saudi system is now closed,” Dar said, noting that any concession to Pakistan would require equal treatment for other Zone One and Two countries, making further flexibility unlikely.

Dar acknowledged that previous high-level diplomatic efforts had yielded a partial success when Saudi Arabia reinstated a quota of 10,000 pilgrims for Pakistan — but only after granting similar relaxations to other nations.

While PM Shehbaz appreciated Dar’s and Yousaf’s efforts, the prime minister accepted that the door for further quota restoration now appeared closed.

Tour operators brace for fallout

With the Hajj operation already underway and Saudi systems locked for new bookings, the premier directed the Ministry of Religious Affairs to begin returning bookings made through private operators, aiming for a 100 percent refund to all affected people.

Minister Yousaf assured the prime minister that the ministry was actively working on the process. He said Saudi authorities were ready to return funds that had been transferred through official channels, but added that no guarantee could be given for payments made through unofficial or undocumented means.

Officials from the Ministry of Religious Affairs briefed the meeting on technical details, explaining that refunds would be issued through the authorized "Munazzams"—clusters of private operators who handled the funds and bookings.

However, delays are expected as the money stuck in Saudi banks is processed and returned through official procedures. A detailed report on the crisis is also being prepared.

Chairman of the Pakistan Ulema Council, Hafiz Tahir Ashrafi, also attended the meeting and updated the prime minister on previous engagements with Saudi authorities regarding the quota issue.

However, sources said that irregularities have emerged even within the restored quota of 23,620. While 17,000 pilgrim profiles are showing up on the system, data for 6,620 pilgrims is still pending -- causing concern among tour operators.

Quota chaos unveils tensions within private sector

Meanwhile, the Hajj Organizers Association of Pakistan (HOAP) submitted detailed records to the Prime Minister’s Office, revealing that 40 clusters of private tour operators transferred 481.5 million Saudi Riyals (roughly PKR36 billion) on behalf of 60,933 pilgrims -- funds now stuck due to the cancellation of the quota.

The Ministry of Religious Affairs maintains that only funds transferred via official channels, and used to book accommodation and services in Saudi Arabia, are eligible for refunds. No commitment has been made regarding money sent outside the system.

While Saudi embassy sources confirm that discussions are ongoing and a resolution is still being sought, confidence within HOAP is beginning to fray. Several member companies have publicly criticized their own leadership and the ministry over alleged mishandling of quota distribution.

HOAP member Nazir Hussain told Nukta that some large operators within the clusters were monopolizing the quota and sidelining smaller companies. “The whole point of forming these clusters was fair distribution, but instead we’ve been completely excluded. This isn’t just a scandal — it’s the mother of all scandals,” he said.

Private operators further allege that Saudi authorities had indicated the availability of over 30,000 unclaimed plots, but the Ministry of Religious Affairs failed to act on this. The ministry, however, has dismissed these reports as baseless rumors.

As the Hajj season approaches and tensions rise within the private Hajj sector, the government’s focus has now shifted to damage control — specifically, ensuring that the financial burden of this unprecedented failure does not fall on the pilgrims.

It is pertinent to mention here that an administrative error involving more than 50 million riyals ($13.3 million) was a significant factor behind Saudi Arabia’s cancellation of 67,000 Pakistani Hajj quotas, as revealed in documents obtained by Nukta.