Saudi Arabia sets 12 years as minimum age to perform Hajj
Priority given to first-time pilgrims, says Saudi Ministry of Hajj
Srinagar: Saudi Arabia has said that the minimum age for performing this year’s Hajj pilgrimage is 12 years as the numbers of pilgrims will return to the pre-pandemic times, Gulf News reported.
The report said that the Saudi Ministry of Hajj has also pointed out that priority for registering to undertake this year’s pilgrimage will be given to Muslims who did not do Hajj, one of Islam’s five obligatory duties.
The ministry added that only Muslims holding Hajj visas or those with legal residency in Saudi Arabia will be allowed to undertake the pilgrimage rites.
Saudi Arabia has said there will be no limits on the numbers of pilgrims from around the world for the upcoming Hajj season, reversing earlier restrictions prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic in the past two years.
Following the decision of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), Haj Committee of India (HCoI) issued a circular intimating that the authorities in the KSA have decided that children below the age of 12 years will not be allowed to proceed for Haj 1444(H)-2023.
“In view of the position explained above, no application of children below the age of 12 years as on 30-04-2023 including infants will be entertained for Haj 1444 2023. Therefore, all Haj applications of the children below 12 years including infants registered till date will be rejected for Haj 1444-2023,” the circular reads.
