TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian government is studying a possible scheme to allow Muslims to perform the hajj pilgrimage without joining the country’s long waiting list, while ensuring protection for millions of prospective pilgrims who have already been in line for years.
Deputy Minister of Hajj and Umrah Dahnil Anzar Simanjuntak said the idea remains under discussion and has not yet become official policy.
“President Prabowo wants us to explore how the hajj can be organized without queues. So we are now formulating a model for a hajj system without waiting lines,” Dahnil told reporters in Jakarta on Thursday.
He said Indonesia’s lengthy hajj waiting list is closely tied to the country’s hajj financing system, which continues to attract more applicants despite the limited annual quota allocated by Saudi Arabia.
“The more applicants there are, the longer the queue becomes,” he said.
As a comparison, Dahnil noted that several countries use different systems to manage hajj registration. Malaysia, he said, also experiences long waiting times through its Tabung Haji system, while in some other countries, including India, waiting periods are not as long as in Indonesia.
According to Dahnil, the government is considering a more flexible mechanism that would resemble direct ticket booking, in which pilgrims compete for seats within the quota granted by Saudi Arabia rather than joining a years-long national waiting list.
“For example, Saudi Arabia gives us a quota of 200,000. We would then determine the cost, and there would be no queue. People would book directly, and those who secure a spot would be the ones who depart,” he said.
Despite the proposal, Dahnil stressed that the government must protect pilgrims who have already registered under the current system. He said around 5.7 million Indonesians are currently on the hajj waiting list.
“We are thinking about that model, but we also have to ensure protection for those who have been waiting all this time. There are now 5.7 million people waiting to perform the hajj. So how do we protect them?” he said.
He emphasized that the plan is still being refined and should not be seen as a final decision.
“We are still working on it. Later, I may explain the details and what the model will look like. But this is not a decision yet. We are continuously refining it so that the president’s idea of a hajj without queues can eventually be realized,” Dahnil said.
The discussion comes as Indonesia continues to face one of the world’s longest hajj waiting lists due to strong demand and limited quotas. The government has previously said the average waiting period has been standardized at around 26 to 27 years under the 2026 quota system.
Read: Indonesia Set to Dispatch First Hajj Pilgrims on April 22
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