Posted by ibdat@dmin in Umrah on March 6th, 2020
Ibadat.pk | Hajj Desk | Karachi [updated: 23 March 2020] : There has been panic and a scare after the recent outbreak of Corona Virus COVID-19 in which has now spread to different parts of the world.
We all hope and pray that there is cure / treatment of Corona Virus is produced soon so that life can go on as usual. However, if, God Forbid it is not, there is expectations that once the Umrah ban is lifted, things will progress as normal for Hajj 2020.
However, there are rumours in the market that the Saudi Government may reduce Hajj Quota of different countries in an effort to manage the spread of virus. If this is the case then the over all Hajj Quota from Pakistan may be reduced and hence Quota of Private Hajj Organizers will also get reduced. This means that the availability of Private Hajj Packages for 2020 in Pakistan will go down.
Kindly note: that these are just assumptions based on opinions of with in the industry and there is no confirmation from any source about any reduction in Quota. Nothing can be confirmed until things progress and Umrah Visa issuance is revived by the Saudi Government. Decision of hajj quota by Saudi Government is yet to be seen!
The Saudi measure has thrown the business of many Hajj Organizers into disarray with questions looming of Hajj 2020. But this is not limited to agents. Hotels in Makkah and Madinah, Transport companies, Airlines, Maktabs, Aziza (Azizyah) building owners in short, all the tourism companies involved in the making of Haj packages will suffer heavy losses in case of reduced quota.
According to a source, hundreds of Canadians who had made Hajj booking with tour operators with non-refundable deposits (thousands of dollars per person) are cancelling their plans, while Hajj operators are facing bankruptcy. Who will pocket the deposited thousands is not clear though. It is important to mention here that many Private Hajj Organizers pay a portion of costs as a token to Hotels in Saudi Arabia and Maulimeen (people who manage Maktabs – tent spaces in Mina and Arafat) so that they reserve spaces before bookings of Hajj Packages start.
Generally in Pakistan (with trust worthy Hajj Group Organizers) if cancellation is due to force majeure or reduction in Hajj Quota, the organizers try and get refunds on behalf of their clients and refund the total amount to hajj organizers (important: kindly check with your Hajj Operator before making any payments). However its a different story if potential Hujjaj themselves are unwilling to travel and the actual hajj package is going ahead as scheduled. That case refund policy of individual Hajj Organizers will apply!
In times like these, it is advisable to do the following:
It is important to mention here that – if you have only registered your interest and not made a payment, then you should be prepared for the impact of exchange rate fluctuations on Hajj Package Price.
Cost of a Hajj Package is pegged in Saudi Riyal (SAR) as 80% of the payments need to be made to companies in Saudi Arabia. Hence if Pakistani Rupee (PKR) gets devalued, Hajj Package price in PKR will increases.
This is why, we at IBADAT.PK, as part of our aim to create transparency (for both our users and Hajj Organizer we work with), have given the ability to our users to view package prices in SAR in case of fluctuations. [Read: The impact of exchange rate on Hajj Package Price]
You can search of Hajj Packages of reliable Hajj Organizers from around Pakistan by visiting the following link: Tentative Hajj 2020 Packages from Pakistan
We only work with Government Approved Hajj Organizers – You can view the Hajj organizers we work with on the following link: http://ibadat.pk/verified-hajj-group-organizers/
Remember, we will never ask you to pay us for Hajj Packages. All Payment should be made in the name of Private Hajj Organizer that you are traveling with. Always verify if a company has been issued Hajj Quota by Checking their Registration License (RL) Number. If a company doesn’t provide their RL Number, then kindly do not Book Package or pay them unless you know their RL number.
Posted by ibdat@dmin in Hajj Info Guidance on May 16th, 2019
Rupee’s tumble has begun. The value of the US dollar against the rupee touched another all-time high for the second consecutive day, reaching approximately Rs148 in the inter-bank market (as of 12:30 Pm – 16 May 2019).
“Fears of further devaluation as a result of the agreement with the IMF have depressed the currency market and the rupee may lose more against the greenback in the coming days,” Secretary General of Exchange Companies Association of Pakistan Zafar Paracha as reported by Dawn.
Approximately, 85% to 90 % of the payments Hujjaj make for their packages is sent to Saudi Arabia by the operators to make arrangement (like hotel bookings, Maktab payments, food and transport arrangements etc). Only a very small portion of these payments are used for arrangements in Pakistan as these arrangements are limited to Hajj Training Programs, give aways and salaries for Hajj teams traveling from the country.
Due to this Hajj Package price calculation is actually done in Saudi Riyal and then converted in Pakistani Rupees. Hence even a minor depreciation in Pakistani Rupee’s value results in a directly proportional increase in hajj package price.
On average every 1 Rs rise in Saudi Riyal value, will result in package price rising by Rs 15,000 to Rs 50,000 (depending on the Hajj Package)
For many Hajj Group Organizers, the current scenario is very much a flash back from last year’s Hajj.
in 2018, Hajj Operators were stuck in exactly the same situation, as when they released their Package last year the exchange rate was: SAR 1 = PKR 29. However when the booking were being made, it had crept up to SAR 1 = PK34.
Previous trend in the market has been such that Hajj Packages were released in Pakistani Rupees for easy understanding and communication of the package details. However since the Pakistani Government does not provide any protection to businesses in terms of shielding from currency fluctuations like offer financial products like currency futures / swaps etc – Hajj Group Organizers suffered huge exchange rate losses due to this in 2018.
Keeping in mind last years situation, most of the Hajj Organizers have released Hajj Package Prices for 2019 in Saudi Riyal.
Hajj Package prices are pegged in Saudi Riyal (SAR) and the prices provided in SAR would not change during on going bookings. However as stated previously if Pak Rupee depreciates, the package price will automatically rise.
Hence if you have decided to go for Hajj in 2019, then the best way to protect yourself from fluctuations is by :
+92 (300) 040-4255
info@ibadat.pk
+92 (300) 040-4255
info@ibadat.pk
