Short answer
The Umrah visa is an electronic visa issued for pilgrims travelling from outside Saudi Arabia, arranged either through an approved platform such as Nusuk or through an Umrah office in your country holding a contract with a Saudi Umrah company. The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah puts the stay at 90 days, the visa fee at around SAR 300, and the minimum age at five years. The visa cannot be issued by an agent without an accommodation and transport package, and travellers from Pakistan must carry both a meningococcal ACWY and a polio vaccination.
What the Umrah visa actually is
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah defines it in one sentence: an electronic visa granted by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to pilgrims wishing to perform Umrah, allowing them freedom of movement between Makkah, Madinah and all cities of the Kingdom during their stay.
Three things that follow from that definition
- It is electronic. There is no sticker to collect from a counter in the usual case, and the visa is checked digitally.
- It is not limited to the two holy cities. The Ministry confirms separately that the Umrah visa allows travel between Makkah, Madinah and all cities in the Kingdom during the permitted stay.
- It is for Umrah. The Ministry says it is not possible to extend the Umrah visa for the Hajj season, and that performing Hajj requires its own permission rather than a visit or work visa.
Who decides what
Two Saudi ministries are involved and it helps to know which one to ask. The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah runs the platform, the operators and the permits. Visas themselves sit with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its missions abroad: when the Hajj and Umrah FAQ is asked what to do about a visa rejected by a Saudi embassy, it refers the question to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Entry and overstay penalties belong to the Ministry of Interior.
The two official routes
The Ministry sets out two ways to obtain the visa, and the difference between them matters for who you pay and what you are buying.
Through an approved platform
The first route is designing the Umrah programme directly through one of the approved electronic platforms, such as Nusuk. Nusuk is described on its own pages as the official platform under the supervision of the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah. The unified platform behind it, Nusuk Masar, is where Umrah companies, housing and transport providers and external agents are registered.
Through an external agent
The second route is contacting an external agent. Nusuk Masar defines external agents as companies based outside the Kingdom that have contracts with Saudi Umrah companies to offer Umrah services in the pilgrim’s home country, and Umrah companies as companies licensed by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah to provide services to pilgrims arriving from outside the Kingdom.
The Ministry puts the relationship plainly: all Umrah pilgrims coming from outside the Kingdom are linked to operating contracts with Umrah offices in their country, the external agent, accredited by the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah. So the group organiser in Lahore or Karachi is not an informal middleman in the official model. They are meant to be a contracted party in a chain that ends at a licensed Saudi company.
The Pakistani side of it
In Pakistan, Umrah group organisers are dealt with by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony, which publishes a list of attested Umrah tour operators and sets out the documents required for attestation of an Umrah contract under the Hajj and Umrah Act 2024. Ask your operator for their attestation and check it against the Ministry’s own list rather than a photograph on a brochure. The guide to checking a visa consultant in Pakistan explains how to verify a registration and where to report fraud.
The package condition
This is the single rule that explains most of what a Pakistani pilgrim is actually buying, and most people never see it stated.
What the Ministry says
Asked whether a pilgrim can come on an Umrah visa without a service package, the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah answers that an Umrah visa cannot be issued by the external agent without service packages, and names them: accommodation and transport. The visa and the package are tied together at the point of issue.
That is why a quote cannot sensibly be a single figure. There is a visa fee, there is accommodation, there is transport, and there is whatever the operator charges for arranging it. Those are four different things and a written contract should show them.
What you should not be asked to pay
The Ministry is clear here too. Asked whether a pilgrim will have to pay additional amounts outside the contract signed with the Umrah company in their country, it answers that you are not required to pay any additional amounts outside the contract unless you wish to add other services not mentioned in it.
If money is being asked for once you are in Makkah, for something the contract already covers, that is a complaint rather than a cost. The Ministry directs service complaints about hotels and furnished apartments to the Ministry of Tourism, and complaints about the campaign itself to its own Enaya centres or its beneficiary services centre.
How long you can stay
The Ministry gives the figure in several places and it is worth reading them together, because its own page is not perfectly consistent.
| Question | What the official answer says |
|---|---|
| Duration of stay for arrivals with Umrah visas | 90 days |
| Extension beyond 90 days | The system does not allow it |
| Extension into the Hajj season | Not possible |
| Latest date to leave | According to the programme applied through, or before the 90 days end |
| When Umrah visas start being issued | From the 15th of Dhu al-Hijjah |
| More than one Umrah visa in a year | Possible, with no fees for repeating Umrah |
The older answer on the same page
One answer in the same FAQ, about the period between obtaining the visa from a Saudi embassy and entering the Kingdom, still says entry must be within three months of the date of visa issuance and that the stay must not exceed thirty days, ending at the latest on 15 Dhu al-Qi’dah. That does not sit easily with the repeated 90-day answers elsewhere on the page.
When an official source carries two figures, the safe practice is the same one I give for every country: follow the dates printed on your own visa, and book your return inside them. Do not plan a trip whose length depends on which version of the rule turns out to apply at the counter.
The fee, and what sits on top
The Ministry states that there is a fee for issuing the Umrah visa, estimated at 300 Saudi Riyals, for arrivals from outside Saudi Arabia. Hold on to that number, because it is the only part of an Umrah quote set by a government rather than a business.
What the rest of the price is
- Accommodation. The hotel or apartment in Makkah and Madinah, which is the largest variable in most packages.
- Transport. Airport transfers and travel between the two cities, which the package must cover when an agent issues the visa.
- Flights. Usually quoted inside the package in Pakistan, and the component that moves most by season.
- The operator’s own margin. Legitimate, and it should be visible rather than buried.
When a family is quoted one number for everything, they lose the ability to compare operators at all, because they cannot see which part of the difference is a better hotel and which is a bigger margin. A written breakdown is not an unreasonable thing to ask for before you pay.
Fees that do not exist
The Ministry says there are no fees for repeating Umrah, and that booking an Umrah permit through the Nusuk app is a service of the platform. If someone is charging you for a permit that the official app issues, ask what exactly you are buying.
Vaccinations, including the rule that names Pakistan
The Saudi health authorities publish a document each year headed “Health Requirements and Recommendations for Travelers to Saudi Arabia for Umrah”. The 1447H edition for 2026 contains the detail that matters most to a Pakistani pilgrim, and most packages do not mention it.
Meningococcal meningitis, for everyone
The document states that all individuals intending to perform Umrah, from all countries, are required to be vaccinated with a vaccine including the serogroup ACWY before travelling. It accepts either a meningococcal quadrivalent ACWY conjugate or pentavalent ACYWX conjugate vaccine received within the last five years, or a meningococcal quadrivalent ACWY polysaccharide vaccine received within the last three years. Either way, the dose must be at least 10 days before arrival.
The certificate trap
The same section adds a condition that quietly costs people two years of cover. Health authorities in the country of origin must clearly indicate the vaccine name and the date of administration on the certificate, and if the type of vaccine is not indicated, the vaccine would be considered valid for three years only from the date of administration. A conjugate dose that should have counted for five years drops to three because a clinic left a field blank.
Polio, because Pakistan is on the list
This is the requirement specific to travellers from Pakistan. The document lists countries with wild poliovirus type 1 as Afghanistan and Pakistan, and requires all individuals arriving from those countries to be vaccinated with at least one dose of bivalent oral polio vaccine or inactivated polio vaccine before travelling. The target group is stated as all individuals arriving from the target countries, regardless of age or prior vaccine status.
Read that last clause again. It is not limited to children, and a childhood vaccination record does not satisfy it. The document also notes it is recommended that an IPV dose be received within the previous 12 months and given not less than four weeks before arrival, and an OPV dose within the previous six months on the same four-week rule.
| Vaccine | Who it applies to | The stated window |
|---|---|---|
| Meningococcal ACWY conjugate or ACYWX pentavalent | All individuals performing Umrah, from all countries | Within the last 5 years and at least 10 days before arrival |
| Meningococcal ACWY polysaccharide | All individuals performing Umrah, from all countries | Within the last 3 years and at least 10 days before arrival |
| Polio, bOPV or IPV | All arrivals from Pakistan, regardless of age or prior status | At least one dose before travelling |
| COVID-19 | Listed groups including over 65s, pregnant women and several chronic conditions | Proof of vaccination or immunity as set out in the document |
| Seasonal influenza | Recommended rather than required | The updated vaccine for the current season |
Where the record goes
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah says vaccinations for Umrah performers coming from abroad are registered in the Tawakkalna application on entry into the Kingdom. Carry the paper certificate anyway, because a phone app is only as good as the data behind it and the certificate is what a clinic abroad can read.
Documents and the people rules
Beyond the package and the vaccines, a handful of published rules decide who can travel and on what.
Age
The Ministry states that the minimum age for issuing an Umrah visa or permit is five years. If you are planning a family trip around a younger child, that is the constraint to plan around rather than hope past.
Women travelling without a mahram
The Ministry’s FAQ asks whether a woman is allowed to come to perform Umrah without a mahram, and answers: yes, it is allowed. No minimum age or further condition is attached to that answer on the page. Individual operators may still run their groups differently, so if you are arranging travel for a mother or a sister going without a male relative, ask the operator about their own policy before booking.
Biometrics
Saudi Arabia has begun requiring biometric registration before an Umrah visa is issued electronically, using an app called Saudi Visa Bio. The Ministry lists the countries where the requirement has started as the United Kingdom, Tunisia, Kuwait, Bangladesh and Malaysia. Pakistan is not on that published list, but the list is the sort of thing that grows, so ask your operator whether it has reached Pakistan by the time you apply.
Timing between approval and the embassy
The Ministry gives 15 days as the allowed period between its approval of a visa request through the electronic portal and the pilgrim attending the embassy to obtain the visa. If your operator sits on an approval, the clock is running.
Permits, Nusuk and Tawakkalna
A visa lets you into the country. A permit lets you perform Umrah at a particular time. Pilgrims who do not understand the difference lose hours at the Haram.
How the permit works
- The Umrah permit is issued through the Nusuk app.
- Entering Al-Masjid Al-Haram to perform Umrah is linked to the permit time, although you may enter for prayer at any time.
- Only one active permit exists at a time, and you can book again once the previous one expires.
- There is no feature to modify an Umrah time. You cancel through the Nusuk app before the permit time begins and issue a new one.
- Permits are displayed and verified on arrival through the Tawakkalna and Nusuk applications.
The Rawdah and the Prophet’s Mosque
Nusuk also handles the permit to pray in the Rawdah at the Prophet’s Mosque in Madinah, describing it as a service for booking an appointment to organise visits. Treat it the same way as the Umrah permit: a separate booking, made in the app, with a time on it.
Assembly points
The Ministry explains that the main assembly points are at the entrances to the Haram courtyards, where it is verified that the pilgrim has an Umrah permit before they are directed to a bus. It adds that a pilgrim with a confirmed booking at a hotel near the Haram can go directly to the Haram without passing through the assembly point, and that transport tickets bought there are optional.
Inside the Kingdom
A few published answers are worth knowing before you travel, because they contradict things people are commonly told.
- Airports. A pilgrim may enter and exit from any international or regional airport in Saudi Arabia, and may enter by one means of transport and leave by another.
- Where the visa is issued. A pilgrim can obtain an Umrah visa in their own country and travel to the Kingdom from another country.
- Quarantine. The Ministry states there is no institutional quarantine for arrivals with an Umrah visa.
- A lost passport. The Ministry says a pilgrim who loses their passport should contact the company they applied through, and if that company does not respond, contact the Enaya Center for Pilgrims’ Services.
How Umrah schemes go wrong
Umrah is not a work route, and the serious harm on this road comes from people who treat it as one. Both Saudi and Pakistani rules are against them.
The Umrah visa sold as a way to stay
The visa is for Umrah and it ends. The Ministry says the system does not allow extension beyond 90 days, and that extending into the Hajj season is not possible. It also says penalties for staying on after a visa expires are not its department, which is a polite way of saying they are a matter for the Ministry of Interior. An agent telling a young man he can go on Umrah and find work afterwards is describing an overstay.
Hajj without a permit
The Ministry is explicit that performing Hajj requires a valid national identity or residency permit for those inside the Kingdom, and its own permission otherwise, and that it cannot be done on a visit or work visa. Every season brings reports of pilgrims who were told otherwise and found out at a checkpoint.
Signs the arrangement is not what it claims
- No written contract, or a contract that names no Saudi Umrah company.
- The operator cannot show attestation from the Ministry of Religious Affairs.
- A single lump sum with no visa fee line and no named hotel.
- Payment in cash with no receipt, or into a personal account.
- Someone keeping your original passport.
- Any suggestion that work or a longer stay can be arranged after arrival.
If you have already paid and something feels wrong, bring the receipts and the messages to a consultation and have them read before you travel rather than after.
How do you apply, step by step?
The order below follows the official model: the operator or the platform first, then the people and the health paperwork, then the visa, then the permit.
Choose how you are applying
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah describes two routes: designing the Umrah programme directly through an approved electronic platform such as Nusuk, or going through an external agent, meaning an Umrah office in your own country holding an operating contract with a Saudi Umrah company. In Pakistan, check that an operator is attested by the Ministry of Religious Affairs and Interfaith Harmony before you hand over money.
Check the passport and the ages in your group
Make sure every passport in the group is valid well beyond the trip and that the names match the other documents exactly. The Ministry states that the minimum age for issuing an Umrah visa or permit is five years, so plan around that if you are travelling with small children.
Get the vaccinations done early
The Saudi health authorities require meningococcal ACWY vaccination for everyone performing Umrah, from every country, and the dose must be at least 10 days before arrival. Because Pakistan is named in the polio table, travellers from Pakistan also need a dose of bOPV or IPV regardless of age or previous vaccination. Get both done well before your flight and make sure the certificate names the vaccine and the date.
Book the accommodation and transport package
The Ministry is explicit that an Umrah visa cannot be issued by the external agent without service packages covering accommodation and transport. Settle the hotel and transport in the booking, and ask for the contract in writing. You are not required to pay anything outside that contract unless you choose to add services it does not mention.
Have the visa issued and check every field
The Umrah visa is an electronic visa. When it arrives, compare the name, passport number and dates against the passport itself. Umrah visas fall under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its missions abroad, so a question about a refusal goes to them, not to the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah.
Book the Umrah permit, and leave on time
Once in the Kingdom, book the Umrah permit through the Nusuk app, keeping to the time written on it. Permits are shown and verified through the Tawakkalna and Nusuk apps. Leave Saudi Arabia according to the programme you travelled on, or before the 90 days of the visa run out, whichever comes first.
What goes wrong most often?
Skipping the polio dose
Pakistani travellers assume the meningitis vaccine is the whole requirement. It is not. Pakistan sits in the wild poliovirus table of the Saudi health document, and the dose is required regardless of age or prior vaccination status.
A vaccination certificate with the type left blank
The rule quietly converts a five-year conjugate dose into three years of cover when the certificate does not name the vaccine. Check the certificate at the clinic, not at the airport.
Paying one lump sum
A single figure hides the visa fee, the hotel, the transport and the margin. The Ministry publishes the visa fee as roughly SAR 300, so you can at least check that one line against the official answer.
Treating the visa as the permit
Pilgrims arrive, reach the Haram, and find that entry to perform Umrah is tied to the time on a Nusuk permit they never booked. Download the app and understand the permit before you fly.
Planning around a child under five
The published minimum age for issuing an Umrah visa or permit is five years. A family that books flights first and reads the rule second ends up changing the whole trip.
A realistic example
This is a hypothetical illustration, not a real client. Shahid, 52, and his wife Rukhsana want to perform Umrah in the spring, travelling with Shahid’s mother who is 74.
- Ten weeks before. They shortlist two operators in Lahore and ask each for the name of the Saudi Umrah company they hold a contract with, the hotel, the transport, and the visa fee as a separate line. One produces all four. The other says it is all included.
- Eight weeks before. They go to a clinic for the meningococcal ACWY vaccination and a polio dose, and check on the spot that the certificates name the vaccine and the date. They note the 10-day rule and the four-week recommendation for polio, which their dates clear comfortably.
- Six weeks before. They sign the contract with the operator who answered in writing, and keep a copy. They confirm there is nothing further to pay in Makkah beyond what the contract lists.
- When the visa arrives. They compare the names, passport numbers and dates against the passports before anyone books anything non-refundable.
- Before travelling. All three install Nusuk and Tawakkalna, and Shahid helps his mother register so a permit can be booked for her rather than for a phone she does not carry.
- In Makkah. They book the Umrah permit in the app and go at the time on it. They keep the paper vaccination certificates with the passports.
None of that is sophisticated. It is simply refusing to let the operator be the only source of information about rules the Saudi government publishes itself.
The version that goes wrong
Now imagine a nephew, 24, offered a cheap Umrah package by a neighbour with no attestation and no written contract, on the understanding that work can be found once he is there. The visa ends after its stated period with no extension available. Staying on puts him in the hands of a ministry whose penalties the Hajj and Umrah pages decline to describe, and leaves him with an immigration breach he will have to declare on every visa form he fills in for years. The money for the package is gone either way.
Key takeaways
- The Umrah visa is an electronic visa allowing movement between Makkah, Madinah and all cities of the Kingdom during the stay.
- The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah puts the stay at 90 days, with no extension beyond that and none into the Hajj season.
- The visa fee is stated as roughly SAR 300 for arrivals from outside Saudi Arabia, separate from the package price.
- An external agent cannot have an Umrah visa issued without a service package covering accommodation and transport.
- Meningococcal ACWY is required for everyone, at least 10 days before arrival, and the certificate must name the vaccine or it counts for only three years.
- Pakistan is on the wild poliovirus list, so a bOPV or IPV dose is required regardless of age or prior vaccination status.
- A woman may perform Umrah without a mahram, and the minimum age for a visa or permit is five years.
- The Umrah permit is booked separately in the Nusuk app, and entry to perform Umrah is tied to the time on it.
Frequently asked questions
How long can you stay in Saudi Arabia on an Umrah visa?
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah answers this directly: the duration of stay for arrivals with Umrah visas is 90 days. The same FAQ says the system does not allow extending the Umrah visa beyond 90 days, and that it cannot be extended into the Hajj season. An older answer on the same page still describes entry within three months of issue with a stay not exceeding thirty days, so follow the dates printed on your own visa and the programme you booked.
How much does the Umrah visa cost?
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah states that there is a fee for issuing the Umrah visa, estimated at 300 Saudi Riyals, for arrivals from outside Saudi Arabia. That is the government line only. Your accommodation, transport and the operator’s own charges sit on top of it, which is why a package price and a visa fee are two different numbers and should appear as two different lines on any quote.
Can you get an Umrah visa without booking a package?
Not through an agent. The Ministry says plainly that an Umrah visa cannot be issued by the external agent without service packages, naming accommodation and transport. The alternative route it describes is designing the Umrah programme yourself through an approved electronic platform such as Nusuk. Either way, the accommodation and transport are part of how the visa is issued, not an optional extra.
What vaccinations are required for Umrah from Pakistan?
Two matter for a Pakistani traveller. The Saudi health authorities require meningococcal ACWY for all individuals intending to perform Umrah from all countries: a quadrivalent or pentavalent conjugate vaccine received within the last five years, or a quadrivalent polysaccharide vaccine received within the last three years, and in either case at least 10 days before arrival. Separately, Pakistan is listed in the wild poliovirus table, so travellers arriving from Pakistan must have at least one dose of bivalent oral polio vaccine or inactivated polio vaccine, regardless of age or prior vaccination status.
What happens if the vaccine type is not written on my certificate?
The Saudi health requirements document deals with this. It says health authorities in the country of origin must clearly indicate the vaccine name and the date of administration on the vaccination certificate, and that if the type of vaccine is not indicated, the vaccine would be considered valid for three years only from the date of administration. A conjugate dose that should have counted for five years is cut to three by a missing line on the certificate, so check it before you leave the clinic.
Can a woman go for Umrah without a mahram?
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah FAQ asks and answers this question in one line: is a woman allowed to come to perform Umrah without a mahram, yes, it is allowed. The Ministry sets no mahram condition for Umrah on that page. Operators may still apply their own group rules, so ask before booking if that matters to you.
Can children go for Umrah?
Over the age of five. The Ministry states that the minimum age for issuing an Umrah visa or permit is five years. It also notes that two child care sites have been prepared within the areas of the Grand Mosque for children under 12, and that children are allowed in the courtyards of Al-Masjid an-Nabawi.
Do you need a permit as well as a visa to perform Umrah?
Yes. The visa gets you into the Kingdom; the Umrah permit is booked through the Nusuk app and carries a time. The Ministry says entering Al-Masjid Al-Haram for performing Umrah is linked to the permit time, although you may enter for prayer at any time. Only one active permit exists at a time, and you book again once it expires. Permits are displayed and verified on arrival through the Tawakkalna and Nusuk apps.
Can you travel to Madinah and other cities on an Umrah visa?
Yes. The Ministry describes the Umrah visa as an electronic visa allowing freedom of movement between Makkah, Madinah and all cities of the Kingdom during the stay. It also says a pilgrim may enter and exit from any international or regional airport in Saudi Arabia, and may enter by one means of transport and leave by another.
Can you perform Umrah more than once in a year?
Yes. The Ministry confirms it is possible to obtain an Umrah visa more than once in a year, and says there are no fees for repeating Umrah. Inside the Kingdom, the rule is about permits rather than visas: the period between Umrah permits is set so that only one is active at a time, and you can book again once the first expires.
What happens if you overstay an Umrah visa?
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah answers that question by pointing elsewhere: it says imposing fines and penalties on those who delay leaving the Kingdom after the visa expires does not fall within its jurisdiction. That is the Ministry of Interior’s area, and the amounts are not published on the Hajj and Umrah pages. Treat an overstay as a serious immigration breach rather than a fee, because it is a question you will be asked on visa forms for other countries for years afterwards.
Can Ch. Bilal Rasheed arrange an Umrah visa?
No. He is an education consultant and immigration advisor, not an Umrah operator, and Umrah visas are arranged through operators holding contracts with Saudi Umrah companies. What a consultation can do is read an operator’s contract or quote with you before you pay, and explain what the official Saudi pages actually say about the stay, the package condition and the vaccination rules. No one can guarantee a visa or entry.
