Hajj registration deadline extended till March 16

The government has extended the deadline again for Hajj registration till March 16. 

It is the last time the government will extend the deadline, the religious affairs ministry said in a notification on Tuesday.

The notification addressed to Hajj pilgrims, agencies and others concerned said the registration server will automatically shut down once the quota is filled. 

The Saudi government has introduced a biometric visa system for Hajj this year.

All necessary preparations are being made by the Ministry of Religious Affairs for the submission of visa applications under this procedure.

In order to apply for a visa in this new system, the passport must be kept with oneself.

However, those who have already submitted their passports to the Hajj office in Ashkona by registering with the government, when the visa process starts, they can go there and apply for a biometric visa, or they can apply for a visa from any other centre with the passport from there.

All concerned will be informed about the visa submission centre and procedures once the visa process starts.

Some 127,000 Bangladeshis can register to perform Hajj this year.

A Bangladeshi will have to spend at least Tk6.83 lakh to perform hajj under government management this year, up by around Tk1.61 lakh from the previous year. The minimum cost for performing hajj under private management is Tk6.72 lakh this year, about Tk1.5 lakh more than that of the last year.