The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, confirmed a shortage of Umrah visas on Tuesday.
A statement signed by NAHCON’s Assistant Director of Public Affairs, Fatima Sanda Usara, said the commission “will continue to work tirelessly in collaboration with relevant stakeholders to find a satisfactory resolution to the visa inaccessibility.”
The statement explained that the high demand for Umrah visas during Ramadan further exacerbates the shortage. It also disclosed that NAHCON has officially written a letter communicating its concerns directly to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, outlining the implications of unavailable visas for Nigerian tour operators.
The statement also affirmed that NAHCON’s chairman, Malam Jalal Ahmad Arabi, has personally visited the Saudi Embassy in Nigeria to explore potential solutions to the matter.
“The current challenges faced by Nigerian Muslims in obtaining Umrah visas for travel to Saudi Arabia during Ramadan are deeply regrettable and primarily stem from the misuse of privileges granted in the visa issuance process.
“Umrah visas are allocated to countries based on quotas, with Ramadan Umrah visas usually being more expensive. Recently, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia extended the visa validity to 90 days. Many Nigerians secured these visas at lower costs during other periods, obviously in anticipation of performing Umrah during the holy month of Ramadan.
“These individuals exploited the visa validity extension by either prolonging their stays in the kingdom or holding onto visas without utilising them until Ramadan, resulting in a shortage of available visa slots for other Nigerians,” the statement reads.
It added: “So far, few visas do drop occasionally based on the number of Nigerians that free up the space by departing from Saudi Arabia, but paying for such few slots is a gamble, hence pilgrims for the Lesser Hajj are advised to be wiser.”