The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia has said that overseas Muslims aged from 18-50 years will now be permitted to perform Umrah.
According to the Kingdom’s Ministry of Umrah and Hajj, overseas pilgrims are also required to be fully inoculated against COVID-19 with vaccines recognized in Saudi Arabia.
Pilgrims should submit their vaccination certificates to the Saudi Foreign Ministry for issuance of an online pilgrimage visa.
The ministry recently launched a service enabling overseas Umrah pilgrims to obtain permits for performing the rituals in the Grand Mosque in Makkah and pray in the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) Mosque in Medina through the health apps ‘Eatmarna’ and ‘Tawakkalna’ in an effort to facilitate procedures for them.
On October 17, due to a consequential decline in COVID-19 cases and a considerable development in vaccinations in the Kingdom, the interior ministry of Saudi Arabia eased COVID-19 restrictions.
The relaxed measures include ending distancing for worshippers in the two holy mosques in Mecca and Medina where full capacity has been reinstated. However, worshippers are still required to continue to wearing face masks at both mosques.