KUALA LUMPUR, May 7 — Lembaga Tabung Haji (TH) today announced that all its 123 branches nationwide will open on May 8 to enable Muslims going to Saudi Arabia for their Haj pilgrimage this year to settle their travel documents.

Its acting operation executive director Mohamed Ameen Abdul Wahab said it was operating on a Sunday as an extension to the Haj cash offer letter date last Monday.

"This decision was made to provide facilities and to launch the affairs of prospective pilgrims even though Sunday is a holiday in most states. We hope prospective pilgrims as well as depositors can take advantage of this opportunity.

"It aims to avoid congestion at TH branches with depositors to deal with in conjunction with the long Hari Raya holidays,” he said in a statement.

He added that prospective Haj pilgrims can visit any TH branch nationwide, which will open from 8.45am to 4pm tomorrow. 

He said they should bring along the letter of receipt of the Haj offer, a treatment record book after a medical examination and an international passport.

He also said other TH services available tomorrow include savings, withdrawals, and the status conversion of its child's account to adult account.

The Covid-19 pandemic has seen the Saudi government restrict the number of Haj pilgrims from all over the world to Mecca, Islam’s holiest city, the past two years to just a few thousand before the coronavirus spread.

On April 9, Saudi Arabia’s Haj and Umrah Ministry announced that one million local and international pilgrims would be allowed in for the Haj this year, but with strict criteria.

Among them, pilgrims must be aged 65 and below and have completed their primer Covid-19 vaccination as approved by the Saudi Health Ministry.

Pilgrims must also submit documents with a negative PCR test taken within 72 hours before their departure to Saudi.

The quota for pilgrims from Malaysia this year has been set at 14,306 people, Islamic Affairs Minister Datuk Idris Ahmad announced on April 21.

Pre-Covid, the Saudi government set Malaysia’s quota at 31,600.