KUALA LUMPUR, March 26 — Even though there is about a nine per cent increase in the overall cost of performing the Haj this year, the amount to be borne by the pilgrims has yet to be decided, said Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) Haj executive director Datuk Seri Syed Saleh Syed Abdul Rahman.
He attributed the rise to the Saudi Arabian government’s decision to increase the value-added tax (VAT) from five per cent to 15 per cent in July 2020.
“The overall cost of the Haj (not to be borne by the pilgrims) for this year is RM25,000 per person, but this does not take into account the COVID-19 standard operating procedure (SOP) (that has not been announced that may impact the cost.
“Once the (decision) on the implementation of this year’s Haj is made by Saudi Arabia, we will announce the amount to be borne by the pilgrims,” he told a press conference on the pre-operation of the haj pilgrimage for the 1442H/2021M season, here today.
The overall cost of performing the Haj for every pilgrim in 2019 and 2020 was RM22,900.
Sources: BERNAMA