Transfer Hajj costs to pilgrims’ agency in Saudi

The Bangladesh Bank (BB) has instructed banks to transfer money from pilgrims planning to perform Hajj under private management to their designated agencies in Saudi Arabia.

The total expenditure of each Hajj pilgrim under private management during their stay in Saudi Arabia is Tk 3,04,302, which is equivalent to 12,522 Saudi riyals.

As such, banks have been instructed to take the necessary steps to remit this amount via the designated agencies’ international bank accounts for all pilgrims.

The Foreign Exchange Policy Department (FEPD) of the Bangladesh Bank issued a circular in this regard on Monday.

On May 24, the Ministry of Religion’s Hajj-1 division requested that a letter be sent to the Governor of Bangladesh Bank requesting assistance in sending the money.

Meanwhile, another circular from the same department stated that, in accordance with Ministry of Religion instructions, Hajj pilgrims under private management’s expenditure has increased by Tk 59,000.

Banks have also been instructed to send this additional amount in the same manner. Hajj, the largest mass gathering of Muslims across the world, is scheduled to be held in Saudi Arabia on July 8, subject to the sighting of the moon.

A total of 57,585 pilgrims will be performing Hajj this year, with some 4,000 people joining the annual religious event under government arrangement while another 53,585 will attend under private arrangement.