The news travelled fast, in English-language media and in family group chats, often without the detail that matters. This page sets out what was reported, what a Moroccan representative of the profession said about it, and what a family can reasonably ask its agency. It does not tell you whether a particular agency was affected, because we have found no public way to check that.
What did Saudi Arabia do?
It reviewed the foreign agencies that send pilgrims for Umrah, and suspended the contracts of those that fell short. On 1 February 2026, about 1,800 of the roughly 5,800 foreign Umrah agencies were affected, after an assessment that looked at accommodation, transport and visa failures1. The source we rely on is a Gulf News report, listed at the bottom of this page.
“Foreign” here means based outside Saudi Arabia: from the Saudi side, an agency selling Umrah in Casablanca, Paris or Jakarta is a foreign agency. What the source describes is a suspension of their contracts: the agencies had 10 days to make corrections, and new visas through them were blocked1.
Two things follow for a buyer:
- Most foreign agencies were not suspended. The figures describe a minority of the total.
- The criteria are practical ones. Accommodation, transport and visa failures1 are exactly the points a pilgrim feels on the ground. They are also points you can ask about before you pay.
Were Moroccan agencies affected?
We do not know how many, if any. The figures published cover foreign agencies as a whole, with no breakdown by country in the source we have read.
What we do have is the reaction in Morocco, where the president of the travel agencies federation set out to reassure pilgrims. According to the federation's president, quoted by Morocco World News, the suspension of some 1,800 foreign Umrah agencies in early February 2026 only affected the issuance of new visas and was part of a regulatory strategy, not a sanction2.
That is the view of the profession's representative, reported by one outlet. It is useful context, and we present it as such. It is not a Saudi statement, and it does not tell you anything about a specific agency.
The suspension also sits alongside Morocco's own rules, without replacing them. Whether an agency is allowed to trade in Morocco is shown by the Ministry of Tourism's directory, not by the Saudi measure. Searching it takes a few minutes; the method is in how to check a Moroccan Umrah agency's licence. The Saudi assessment and the Moroccan licence answer different questions, and a careful family checks both.
What to ask your agency now
Ask in writing, by message or e-mail, so that you keep the answers. A serious agency will not be offended. If you are organising the trip for parents from another country, the same questions can be sent from your phone; checking your parents' Umrah agency in Morocco from abroad explains how to keep a shared record.
Tick off
- Is the hotel booking registered on Nusuk Masar? According to Gulf Business and Khaleej Times, citing the Saudi ministry, since 10 June 2025 an Umrah visa is issued only if the accommodation is registered on the Nusuk Masar platform, in a hotel licensed by the Saudi Ministry of Tourism that confirms the booking electronically3. Ask for the hotel names and the confirmation.
- Do the dates fall inside the season? The official 1448 calendar sets the last visa issuance on 9 March 2027, the last entry on 23 March 2027 and the last departure on 7 April 20275. A trip planned close to those dates leaves little room if something slips.
- Was the agency, or the partner it works with in Saudi Arabia, among the agencies suspended in February 20261? If yes, ask whether the problem was corrected, and when, and ask for that answer in writing.
- How did the agency's most recent groups get their entry documents? During the suspension, new visas through the agencies concerned were blocked1. An agency whose last groups left on the planned dates can say so, and give the dates.
- What happens to the money already paid if the trip cannot go ahead? Ask for the answer in the contract or in a signed message, before paying anything more.
Answers by phone are a start, not an end. Ask the agency to confirm them in writing, and keep them with the contract and the receipts.
Still unclear
- How a family can check an agency's status with the Saudi side: we know of no public list or search tool, and we will not guess at one.
- Whether any Moroccan agencies were among the suspended agencies, and how many: the source we read gives no breakdown by country.
- How many agencies made the corrections within the 10 days and had their contracts restored1.
- Whether pilgrims who already held a visa were affected: according to the federation's president, quoted by Morocco World News, the measure only affected new visas, and we have found no Saudi source saying so2.
- Whether Saudi Arabia plans another assessment of foreign agencies during the 1448 season5.
What should you do next?
Send your agency the five questions above today, in one message, and wait for written answers. Then search the agency in the Moroccan directory yourself, whatever it says about its Saudi status. We will update this page if an official Saudi source publishes more detail. If a point remains unclear, you can write to us; we explain what to check, and we do not comment on a named competing agency.