State Secretariat: 2027 Hajj Cost Not Yet Final, Government Seeks Reduction

Minister of State Secretary Prasetyo Hadi has stated that the cost of the Hajj pilgrimage for 2027 has not been finalised and may not necessarily increase. According to Prasetyo, the government is still recalculating the fees to be charged to prospective pilgrims next year. He noted that discussions regarding the 2027 Hajj costs are currently inconclusive. “Yesterday was just the initial process led by the Minister of Hajj to calculate as soon as possible the actual cost of the 2027 Hajj,” Prasetyo said at the House of Representatives building in Jakarta on Wednesday, 15 July 2026. Prasetyo therefore emphasised that the 2027 Hajj cost has not been confirmed to rise. He even stated that the government is attempting to calculate the fees so that they might actually decrease. The Gerindra Party politician mentioned several schemes that could potentially lower the Hajj cost. One of them is if the government can reduce the length of stay for pilgrims in Saudi Arabia. “That will certainly affect the Hajj expenses,” he said. One way to reduce the stay in Saudi Arabia, according to Prasetyo, is to increase the number of flights on the Saudi Arabia-Indonesia route. This would reduce the waiting time for pilgrims. “We hope that the addition of flights will reduce the length of stay. So, if the length of stay is reduced, logically the Hajj cost might be calculated so that it can be reduced or lowered,” Prasetyo said. The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah previously proposed an increase in the Hajj Travel Cost (BPIH) for 2027 to Rp 107.3 million per pilgrim. This amount is an increase of Rp 19.9 million compared to the 2026 BPIH, which was Rp 87.4 million. Minister of Hajj and Umrah Mochamad Irfan Yusuf stated that the proposed figure was determined by considering the principles of efficiency, improved service quality, and the sustainability of the Hajj pilgrimage. “The calculation was prepared using the assumption of an exchange rate of 1 US Dollar at Rp 17,500 and 1 Saudi Riyal at Rp 4,666,” he said during a working meeting with Commission VIII of the House of Representatives in Jakarta on Tuesday evening, 7 July 2026. Irfan detailed that the Rp 107 million BPIH allocation is divided into components for the cost of organising the pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia amounting to Rp 60,891,068 or 56.73 percent, and domestic organisation costs of Rp 46,449,103 or 43.27 percent. This cost already includes the average flight price per pilgrim. According to Irfan, the increase in the 2027 Hajj cost is unavoidable due to changes in the rupiah exchange rate, rising flight costs, accommodation costs in Mecca and Medina, land transportation costs, Masyair services, and health services. Additionally, there is the strengthening of the health manasik programme, rising consumption costs in Saudi Arabia, accommodation distribution costs in Medina, and the need for visa financing for replacement pilgrims.