The Tourism and Culture Ministry will engage with the Saudi Arabia's government through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the the kingdom's decision to impose a visa charge for second-time Umrah visitors.

Deputy Minister Datuk Mas Ermieyati Samsudin said the Malaysian government respects the Kingdom's decision to impose a visa charge of 2,000 Riyal or RM2,250.

"We understand that the decision to impose the visa charge is due to economic reasons.

"But the issuance of the letter informing the visa charge comes so suddenly that most visitors and travel operators were caught off guard," she said.

As the Umrah peak season approaches come November, travel agencies are worried that prospective Umrah visitors, especially those who had purchased Umrah package and airline ticket would back out at the last minute.

Mas Ermieyati said the ministry still needs to acquire further details on the visa charge before making any official statement on the matter.

Last Friday, a local online portal reported that Saudi Arabia will start imposing higher visa charge for Umrah visitors on their second trip onwards.

The report stated that the imposition will only come through in the next Hajj year although some prospective Umrah visitors have cancelled their trips despite having made a deposit payment.

Bumiputra Travel and Tour Agents Association of Malaysia (Bumitra Malaysia) President Harith Mohd Ali said the visa charge would cost travel agencies in many ways.

READ: Saudi raises hajj and umrah fees effective Oct 2

READ: New visa charges to allow Muslims who have never performed Hajj to do so

"When prospective visitors cancel their trip, agencies who have made reservations at hotels will have to bear the cost.

"At the same, they would have purchased an airline ticket or charter a plane for the trip. Because of the cancellation, these agencies will lose a lot of money," he said.

When asked about the amount of loss estimated to be incurred by these agencies, Harith said it is still too early to tell.

"We hope the government can help negotiate with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to impose a flat rate on the visa charge so as not to burden prospective visitors.

"At the same time we urge travel agencies to be cautious when approaching this matter and ensure that the visitors are well informed of the changes," he said.

The kingdom's decision to impose a visa charge for second-time visitors applies to all countries including Indonesia and Singapore.

It was reported that the decision came about due to an economic turmoil plaguing the once-prosperous nation, propelled by falling crude oil price for the past few years.

Sources among local travel agencies confirmed that the kingdom might start imposing insurance fees and other charges to visitors soon as part of its effort to boost its income.

The kingdom's government had also gone through budget cuts and civil servants who were called to work during Hajj and Umrah season no longer receive extra allowances for their service.