General UAE Legal Questions LawCabinet Resolution No. (32) of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law

Article (1) Definitions In the application of the provisions of this Resolution, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings assigned to each of them unless the context indicates otherwise: State : United Arab Emirates (UAE). The Authority : General Authority of Islamic Affairs & Endowments (GAIAE).

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Cabinet Resolution of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law 2 Chairman : Chairman of the Authority. Board : Authority Board of Directors. Administration : The Department concerning Hajj and Umrah Affairs at the Authority. Sacred Sites : Mina, Arafat, and Muzdalifah. Holy Land : The Holy Places in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia including Mecca, Madinah, and the Sacred Site…

Article (2) Scope of Application The provisions of this Resolution shall apply to the campaign, its employees, and to pilgrims and Umrah performers within the State.

Article (3) Prohibitions 1. Any natural or legal person shall be prohibited from: a. Practicing brokerage until obtaining a license from the Authority. b. Organizing Hajj ‘on behalf of others’ or advertising it until obtaining approval from the Authority. c. Receiving Hajj or Umra applications without a license. d. Collecting donations for Hajj or Umra without a license. 2. State’s citizens or residents shall refrain from exploiting the services and facilities allocated to pilgrims’ affairs office – affiliated with the United Arab Emirates – in the Holy Lands or during the rituals’ performance, unless they have obtained a permit from the Authority; and the Authority shall issue a decision on…

Article (4) Licensing Committee A committee, referred to as the (Licensing Committee), shall be established within the Authority, formed by a Resolution of the Chairman, and shall practice the following competencies: 1. Decide on applications submitted to obtain a license to practice the Hajj and Umrah contracting activity, including waivers and any related requests, such as, but not limited to, adding a partner, changing the campaign name, cancelling the license, or opening additional branches, as submitted by the administration; 2. Approve the controls and conditions submitted by the administration annually; 3. Approve the contracts concluded by the campaign with other campaigns, pilgrims,…

Article (5) Service Contracts Audit Committee 1. A committee referred to as the (Service Contracts Audit Committee), shall be established within the Authority, formed by a Resolution of the Chairman, and shall practice the following competencies: a. Audit the contracts (housing, transportation, food, and subsistence) submitted by the campaign and ensure validity thereof; b. Inspect the pilgrims housing, determine capacity thereof, and assess additional benefits such as food, transportation, and others; c. Verify the number of individuals assigned to each room, in accordance with the contract concluded between the campaign and the pilgrim; d. Prepare reports on the results of its work and sub…

Article (6) Hajj Affairs Office 1. The Office, along with its committees and tasks, shall be formed by a Resolution of the Chairman, and shall be considered the official representative of the State during the Hajj season. In particular, it shall have the following responsibilities: a. Provide services to the pilgrims of the state; b. Communicate with the authorities in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on matters related to the Hajj season; c. Follow-up on the performance of the Tawaf Foundation overseeing the Office headquarters and campaigns in the Holy Land; d. Follow up on the fulfilment of obligations by companies contracted with the Office headquarters and campaigns in the Holy Land; e. Coop…

Article (7) License Applicant Conditions The following conditions shall be met by the applicant(s) seeking a contracting license: 1. To be a citizen of the State; 2. Age thereof shall not be less than twenty-five (25) Gregorian years, nor more than sixty (60) Gregorian years. The Licensing Committee may extend this age by one year for a period not exceeding five years, based on a medical report from the competent medical authorities confirming competence and ability to practice Hajj and Umrah contracting; 3. To be of good conduct; 4. To possess the administrative and financial capacity to carry out the contracting tasks, in accordance with the provisions of this Resolution; 12. To hold a hig…

Article (8) License Documents Anyone wishing to obtain a contracting license or renew an existing one shall submit an application to the administration on the approved form, accompanied by the following documents: 1. A copy of a valid passport; 2. A copy of the family book; 3. A copy of the ID card; 4. A certificate of good conduct and behavior; 5. A certificate of health fitness issued by the competent medical authorities; 6. A copy of the educational qualification, except for those who obtained a contracting license before the provisions of Resolution; 7. A letter from the employer confirming no objection to obtaining a contracting license, if employed by others; 8. A no objection certific…

Article (9) License Term 1. The term of the campaign license shall be one year, renewable annually for a similar or shorter period, contingent upon the continued availability of the conditions required for the license. The license shall be renewed within one month from the date of its expiration. 2. The initial license shall be limited to Umrah contracting activities only for the first two consecutive years, during which the campaign shall not engage in Hajj contracting activities. After two years from the issuance of the license, the campaign may submit a request to the administration to engage in Hajj contracting activities in accordance with the provisions of this Resolution. The request…

Article (10) License or Renewal Fees 1. The contracting license shall not be granted unless the prescribed fees are paid by the license applicant. 2. License renewal shall not be approved unless the fees and fines stipulated in this regard are paid by the campaign owner. 3. The prescribed fees shall be paid on the date specified for granting or renewing the license, and a part of a month shall be calculated as a full month upon payment.

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Cabinet Resolution of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law 10 4. Campaigns suspended from contracting shall be required to pay the prescribed fees in this regard.

Article (11) 1. The applicant for a contracting license shall submit a copy of the campaign commercial license within (45) working days from the receipt date of the letter addressed to the local authority concerned with practicing the economic activity, approving the contracting license. 2. The approval of the contracting license shall be revoked if the Authority is not provided with the commercial license within forty-five (45) working days from the date of receipt of the letter addressed to the local authority responsible for economic activity, or if the required fees are not paid within forty-five (45) working days from the date of notification of the approval. This applies unless the del…

Article (12) Electronic System a. The Authority shall establish an electronic system to organize all matters related to the Hajj and Umrah Law, and for this purpose, the Authority shall be competent with the following: a. Develop and update the system; b. Determine the dates for the opening and closing of registration in the electronic system; c. Decide on electronic registration requests; d. Create a database for the State pilgrims and Umrah performers; and e. Any other competencies assigned thereto by the Licensing Committee. b. Mechanism of using the electronic system: a. Campaigns shall adhere to the procedures determined by the administration for using the electronic system; b. Individu…

Article (13) Each campaign shall be obligated to conclude a contract with each pilgrim or Umrah performer in accordance with the contract forms issued by the administration, and both parties shall be bound by the provisions contained therein. The campaign shall provide a copy of these contracts to the Authority within the term specified thereby. The campaign shall be prohibited from signing contracts on behalf of pilgrims or Umrah performers, and in the event of a violation, the penalties stipulated in this regard shall be enforced.

Article (14) Campaign Obligations within the State The campaign within the country is obligated to the following: 1. Establish a permanent office equipped for Hajj and Umrah or Umrah contracting activities in accordance with the conditions specified by the Licensing Committee. The area of the

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Cabinet Resolution of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law 13 office shall not be less than 20 square meters; 2. Refrain from practicing any other activity in the campaign office or on behalf of such campaign; 3. Provide proof of ownership of the office or a lease agreement with a duration of no less than six months; 4. Appoint a permanent administrative employee in the campaign office…

Article (15) Obligations of the Campaign during the Hajj Season a. The terms of the contract approved by the authority between the campaign and the pilgrims and Umrah performers shall be implemented in a manner that does not conflict

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Cabinet Resolution of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law 14 with the established obligations. b. In the organizational sphere: a. The withdrawal from the Hajj season due to unwillingness to participate shall be within the stipulated time-frame in this regard; b. Valid rental contracts for accommodation, transportation, and subsistence shall be submitted to the Hajj Service Contracts Audit Committee, certified by the relevant authority, at the…

Article (16) Financial Guarantee 1. The campaign, approved for the pilgrimage season, shall provide the authority with a financial guarantee in name thereof at the time specified by the Licensing Committee. 2. The financial guarantee shall be paid according to the methods determined by the authority. 3. The financial guarantee shall be disbursed upon the request of the authority without the campaign or its owner consent. 4. In case of merging campaigns, the financial guarantee shall be provided in the name of the main campaign, based on the contracts total value of the merged campaigns. 5. The Licensing Committee shall annually determine the amount of the financial guarantee that the campaig…

Article (17) Transporting the Pilgrims and Umrah Performers Pilgrims and Umrah performers may be transferred between state campaigns from one campaign to another after obtaining prior written approval from the pilgrims or Umrah performers and the campaign from or to which they are being transferred and the approval of the Authority or Office.

Article (18) Merging in the Hajj season 1. Merge between several hajj campaigns into one campaign for the season shall be done with the approval of the Licensing Committee, in accordance with the regulations and conditions issued thereby; 2. No additional fees shall be imposed on the pilgrims of the merged campaigns; 3. The merged campaigns shall bear full responsibility for any breach of the obligations stipulated in the merger contract approved by the authority; 4. The main campaign shall bear full legal, administrative, and financial responsibility to the authority, the office, the pilgrims, and all relevant entities both within the country and in the Holy Lands during the hajj season for…

Article (19) Any natural or legal person or licensed campaigns from within or outside the State shall be prohibited from publishing or advertising the organization of Hajj or Umrah within the State permanently and in all different advertising methods (written, audio, visual) or via electronic advertising methods, means of communication and social media platforms, or through posters, leaflets or others, without the approval of the administration.

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Article (20) The campaign, its workers, and pilgrim or Umrah performer shall adhere to the regulations in force and the instructions issued by the Authority, the Office, and the competent Authorities in the State and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Article (21) Administrative Penalties 1. Without prejudice to any harsher penalty set forth by any other law, anyone who violates any provision of this Resolution shall be subjected to the penalty prescribed for each violation in accordance with the schedule of administrative penalties attached hereto. 2. Administrative penalties imposed on the campaign vary according to the number of violations.

Article (22) Grievance 1. Any interested party may submit a grievance to the Licensing Committee against any decision issued pursuant to the provisions of this Resolution. However, the grievance shall be submitted within a period not exceeding thirty (30) days from the date of notification of the contested resolution. The grievance shall be substantiated and attached by all supporting documents, in accordance with the procedures established by the committee. 2. The Licensing Committee shall decide on the grievance in accordance with the procedures issued thereby within a period not exceeding thirty (30) days from the date of the grievance submission. The decision thereof may either be to rej…

Article (23) The Authority employees shall not work or participate in any campaign.

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Article (24) The fines listed in the schedule attached hereto shall be collected through the methods decided by the Ministry of Finance.

Article (25) The Board of Directors shall issue the necessary Resolutions to implement the provisions of this Resolution.

Article (26) The campaigns licensed prior to the issuance of this Resolution shall regularize their status in accordance with the obligations set forth in Article (14) within a period not exceeding one year from the date this Resolution enters into force.

Article (27) The laws and regulations in force at the time this Resolution is issued shall continue to be enforced without contradicting the provisions hereof, until the laws and regulations that replace them are issued.

Article (28) Cabinet Resolution No. (30) of 2013 regarding the regulation of Hajj and Umrah contracting works shall be repealed, and every provision that violates or contradicts the provisions of this Resolution shall be repealed.

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Article (29) This Resolution shall be published in the Official Gazette and shall enter into force as of the day following its publication date. Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum Prime Minister Issued by Us: On:20 Ramadan 1439 H. Corresponding to: June 5, 2018

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Cabinet Resolution of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law 22 Annex 1 Table Attached to Cabinet Resolution No. (32) of 2018 Regarding the Hajj and Umrah Law No. Violation Description Administrative penalties and fines in AED. 1 Practicing Hajj or Umrah contracting work without a license from the Authority. An administrative fine of 1,100,000 AED and the campaign shall be closed for six months. 2 The applicant fails to de…