Pakistan’s Ministry of Religious Affairs has told Hajj 2027 pilgrims that only one day remains to pay the second installment of their dues under the government scheme. The deadline ends on October 20, 2026, and the applications of pilgrims who fail to pay will be cancelled, with the amount already deposited refunded to their accounts. Pilgrims must first upload a doctor-verified medical fitness certificate and then pay through the Pak Hajj App or the National Information Technology Board’s digital Hajj portal. The government scheme covers 107,526 slots, and as of October 12 the ministry had collected Rs32.6 billion in second-installment payments from 51,500 pilgrims.
The deadline and what happens if you miss it
The ministry said in a statement on Monday, October 19, that the payment window, which opened on October 5, closes on October 20. A spokesperson for the Ministry of Religious Affairs said pilgrims under the government Hajj scheme must complete their payments by October 20 to avoid cancellation of their applications, and should use the NITB Hajj portal or the Pak Hajj mobile application to pay.
The consequence of missing the cut-off is spelled out clearly in the ministry’s earlier announcement: failure to deposit the second installment by the deadline results in automatic cancellation of the Hajj application, while the amount already deposited is refunded to the applicant’s account. The ministry has advised pilgrims to complete the process before the final day rather than waiting until the last hours.
How to pay, and the medical certificate you must upload first
Payments can be made through the digital Hajj portal using a bank card, One Link, or a manual bank challan. According to the ministry, 26,000 pilgrims have so far paid through the 1Link payment system, 2,126 used bank cards, and another 23,200 deposited their dues in cash using bank challans.
Before paying, however, every applicant must complete a mandatory medical step. Pilgrims have to download the prescribed medical fitness certificate from the Hajj portal, have it verified and signed by a doctor, and upload it to the portal. Only after the certificate is uploaded does the system allow the second installment to be deposited. The ministry has also closed the facility to modify or change Hajj packages, so applicants can no longer switch between the standard and shorter options.
The entire process is fully digital. Pakistan completed online booking of all government-scheme seats on August 25, marking the first time the entire quota was filled through a digital reservation system, another sign of how deeply digital systems are now running public services, as also seen in Pakistan’s digital and AI compact push this month.
The numbers so far: Rs32.6 billion collected from 51,500 pilgrims
The ministry’s latest verified update on collections, reported on October 12, shows 51,500 applicants had completed their second-installment payments, with Rs32.6 billion received. More than 55 per cent of these payments were made online from home through the Hajj portal, while the rest came through bank cards and manual challans at banks.
No newer collection figures have been released by the ministry, so these remain the latest confirmed numbers one day before the deadline. The split between digital and cash channels shows how far the fully online system has come, though a large share of pilgrims still prefer paying in person at banks.
Package costs and the quota breakdown
Under the government scheme, pilgrims pay Rs1.2 million (about $4,334) for the 40-day package and Rs1.3 million (about $4,695) for the shorter 20 to 25-day package. With the rupee moving against the dollar, pilgrims arranging funds from abroad can check the USD to PKR exchange rate today to estimate the dollar value of their dues.
Pakistan allocated 107,526 slots to the government scheme, including 30,000 for the shorter package, while another 71,696 slots were allocated to the private scheme for next year’s Hajj. Bookings under the private scheme are also under way.
What happens next
Once the October 20 deadline passes, the ministry is expected to finalise the list of government-scheme pilgrims for Hajj 2027 and move to the next stage of preparations, including training and travel arrangements. Pilgrims are advised to complete both the payment and the medical documentation in time, and to follow the Pak Hajj app for official updates. For more of the day’s developments, see PakMirror’s latest national news from Pakistan.
