MECCA — Indonesia’s Minister of Hajj and Umrah, Mochamad Irfan, on February 16 announced that Indonesia’s official Hajj management system, SISKOHAT, has been integrated with Saudi Arabia’s Nusuk platform, linking the two countries’ digital systems in real time to speed visas, identity validation and Hajj permit processing for Indonesian pilgrims.
The move was unveiled at the Saudi Arabia–Indonesia Umrah Co-Exchange forum in Mecca and is aimed at cutting administrative errors, improving departure management and enabling accurate tracking of pilgrims on arrival in Saudi Arabia, according to officials.
Why the link matters for Indonesia’s large Hajj cohort
Indonesia sends more pilgrims to Hajj than any other country, with more than 200,000 departures annually under a country quota set by Saudi Arabia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah within the broader Basic Law of Governance that places Hajj administration under the Saudi state. Officials say the two-way data connection is intended to make core pre-departure steps faster and more consistent while reducing duplication between national systems and tightening compliance with Saudi entry and security rules.
“Every process, from visas and accommodation to healthcare services and return travel, can now be comprehensively monitored and protected,” Irfan said.
What changes inside the pilgrim workflow
Officials described immediate effects on data handling, authorizations and operational oversight across both governments:
- Real-time transfer of pilgrim records from SISKOHAT into Saudi systems.
- Faster visa issuance, identity validation and Hajj permit processing aligned with Saudi eligibility criteria.
- Reduced manual data entry and minimised duplication between Indonesian consular staff and Saudi authorities.
- Improved departure management, including flight manifest checks, and tracking upon arrival in Saudi Arabia.
For provincial religious affairs offices and licensed Hajj travel operators in Indonesia, the integration is expected to narrow the gap between when a pilgrim completes domestic registration and when their status is visible to Saudi counterparts, reducing last‑minute uncertainty for pilgrims who have often saved for years to travel.
Timeline and current scope
The cross-border systems link followed staged checks and security reviews before going live for visa processing, reflecting rising scrutiny of data integrity and cyber risk in large-scale religious travel:
- October 2025: Technical teams began phased integration checks, including cybersecurity reviews, system mapping and secure certificate exchanges.
- January 2026: SISKOHAT and Nusuk were declared securely connected and operational for end‑to‑end visa processing tests.
- February 16, 2026: Integration publicly announced in Mecca.
Farosa, Head of the Centre for Data and Information Technology at Indonesia’s Ministry of Hajj and Umrah, said real-time validation with Saudi systems addresses longstanding issues such as visa delays and data discrepancies, and supports smoother service delivery. He added: “Data can only be accessed by authorised parties, and was protected during transmission, and recorded accountably within the system.”
According to officials, the connection currently supports visa processing. Data is transferred automatically from SISKOHAT to Nusuk without manual intervention, accelerating services and improving consistency while giving both governments a shared, time-stamped record of each approval.
Transparency push after last season’s visa disruption
Irfan called the integration a gateway to greater transparency in Hajj management between the two governments. “This concerns transparency in the quotas granted by Saudi Arabia to each country, including the management of hotel contracts and pilgrim services,” he said.
During the 2025 Hajj season, thousands of Indonesian pilgrims were unable to depart due to visas not being issued by the Saudi government, resulting in financial losses tied to hotel contracts and airline seats, according to officials. The incident triggered domestic scrutiny of how the quota is managed, how quickly unused slots can be reassigned, and whether communication channels with Saudi authorities were sufficiently robust.
Indonesia has proposed more flexible visa replacement mechanisms for pilgrims who cancel, to avoid forfeiting unused quota. “Every quota represents the rights of the faithful. We hope there can be a flexible mechanism up to the eve of departure so that slots are not wasted,” Irfan said, adding that Indonesia remained committed to supporting Saudi Arabia’s Hajj modernisation efforts under the Saudi Vision 2030 programme, which includes the digital Nusuk portal as a key platform for Hajj and Umrah services.
Health records already travel with pilgrims
Beyond pilgrim administration, the two countries’ health systems can already interoperate for Hajj care. Since 2024, Indonesia’s Ministry of Health has issued the Hajj Pilgrim Health Card (KKJH), which stores digital medical records based on the World Health Organisation’s International Patient Summary standard and can be accessed in Saudi Arabia via QR code.
What the KKJH contains, according to officials:
- Demographic details and vaccination status.
- Medical history, medications and allergies.
When scanned at Saudi medical facilities, this information enables faster and more accurate treatment decisions without restarting examinations from scratch. Indonesia and Malaysia are among early movers in large-scale, cross-border health data interoperability for pilgrims, and local health authorities in both countries can use these systems to monitor fitness to travel; departures may be postponed or reassigned to a family member if a pilgrim is deemed medically unfit.
For public-health planners, the KKJH also offers an additional dataset on chronic illnesses and vaccination coverage among departing pilgrims, which can inform vaccination campaigns and pre‑Hajj health regulations in future seasons.
Next functions planned
Officials said future phases will widen the scope of the link beyond visas to include:
- Pilgrim grouping and packaging.
- Arrival and departure processes, including airport handling.
- Service contract management with accommodation and transport providers.
- Umrah services and off-peak pilgrimage travel.
As of January 2026, the SISKOHAT–Nusuk connection is live for visa processing, with both sides preparing the above expansions. Indonesian officials say the objective is a unified digital trail for every registered pilgrim, supporting more accountable use of public funds, stronger protection of pilgrim rights and closer alignment with Saudi Arabia’s evolving Hajj and Umrah service standards.
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