Miqat points are the five places around Makkah where a pilgrim for Umrah or Hajj must be in ihram before going any further. Flying from the UK, you pass one before reaching Jeddah, so the fatwas cited here say you enter ihram on the plane or before boarding. Start in Madinah, and your miqat is Dhul Hulayfah.
This guide shows where each miqat is and which one applies to your trip. It is for UK pilgrims preparing for Umrah and families helping a parent prepare.
Key takeaways
- Five places: there are five miqat, each a set distance from Makkah.
- On a UK flight: the fatwas cited here say you enter ihram before the plane reaches the miqat line, not in Jeddah. One scholar differs.
- Landing in Madinah: your miqat is Dhul Hulayfah (Abyar Ali), on the way to Makkah.
- Passed it without ihram? Go back to it. If you do not, the majority of scholars say a sheep is due.
What is a miqat?
A miqat is a set place where a pilgrim heading for Makkah must be in ihram before passing it. The word means a set time or place. The Quran uses its plural, mawaqit, for the phases of the moon: they “are a means for people to determine time and pilgrimage” (Quran 2:189).
The Prophet ﷺ fixed a miqat for each region. In the hadith of Ibn Abbas, each place serves its own people and anyone who passes through it intending Hajj or Umrah (Sahih al-Bukhari 1524). So the miqat for Umrah is the same as the one for Hajj.
The same hadith says that people living inside these boundaries enter ihram from where they are. For Umrah, the people of Makkah go outside the Haram to enter ihram (Saudipedia). For the clothes and restrictions, see the rules of ihram.
The five miqat points and where they are
There are five miqat points. Four are named in a hadith of Ibn Abbas, and the fifth, Dhat Irq, in other reports.
| Miqat | Known today as | About how far from Makkah | Pilgrims who use it | Reference |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dhul Hulayfah | Abyar Ali, about 14 km from the Prophet’s Mosque | 450 km | People of Madinah and those passing through | Bukhari 1524 |
| al-Juhfah | Pilgrims now use Rabigh, 17 km away | 180 km, north-west | The Levant, Egypt, the Maghrib, Africa and those passing through | Bukhari 1524 |
| Qarn al-Manazil | al-Sayl al-Kabir, about 55 km north of Taif | 75 km | Najd, the Arabian Gulf and those on their route | Bukhari 1524 |
| Yalamlam | The new al-Saadia Mosque, 21 km from the old site | 130 km, south | Yemen, the south of the Kingdom and those passing through | Bukhari 1524 |
| Dhat Irq | No other name given | 100 km, north-east | Iraq and the north of the Kingdom | Bukhari 1531, Abi Dawud 1739 |
Dhat Irq comes from two kinds of report. When Basra and Kufa were taken, Umar told their people: “Take as your Miqat a place situated opposite to Qarn on your usual way”. He then fixed Dhat Irq (Sahih al-Bukhari 1531).
Aisha reports that the Prophet ﷺ himself appointed Dhat Irq for the people of Iraq (Sunan Abi Dawud 1739, Sahih, Al-Albani). In Sahih Muslim 1183b, Jabir’s report also names Dhat Irq, but its narrator is unsure whether it goes back to the Prophet ﷺ. This guide states both and gives no ruling.
The distances are approximate. Saudipedia also lists Wadi Muharram, about 10 km north-west of Taif, which scholars identified as a miqat for pilgrims from Taif.
Which miqat applies to you?
It depends on where your trip starts, not on where you live in the UK.
| Your trip | Where you enter ihram | What to do | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Flying from the UK into Jeddah, direct or with a connection | On the plane, when it is in line with a miqat | Dress before you fly; intend at the line or just before it | IslamWeb, Iftaa’ Department |
| Flying into Madinah first | Dhul Hulayfah (Abyar Ali), on the way to Makkah | No ihram for that flight; ask your guide about the transfer | IslamWeb |
| Already in Makkah | Outside the Haram, such as al-Tan’im | Go out of the Haram first | IslamQA, Bukhari 1784 |
| In Jeddah for another reason, then deciding on Umrah | Where you are | Enter ihram in Jeddah | IslamQA |
Your written quote names the airline, route and airport. Every one of our Umrah packages includes a group guide or scholar who can confirm the plan.
Entering ihram on a flight from the UK
On a plane, you enter ihram when the aircraft is in line with a miqat, or a little before. The fatwas cited here say you do not wait until you land in Jeddah; one scholar differs, as the Jeddah section explains.
This follows Umar’s ruling on Dhat Irq (Sahih al-Bukhari 1531): a place in line with a miqat counts as the miqat (IslamQA). The OIC Fiqh Academy applies the mawaqit to pilgrims “whether travelling by land, air or sea” (Resolution No. 19, 1986).
- Dress before you fly. Jordan’s Iftaa’ Department allows the ihram clothes “at home, or on the plane”.
- Know which flight crosses the line. With a connection, it is the last flight, into Jeddah, because Jeddah lies inside the boundary. Be ready before that flight.
- Intend at the line. Make your intention for Umrah and begin the Talbiyah when the plane is level with the miqat. IslamWeb allows this “directly before the miqat in order to be on the safe side”.
- Listen for the announcement. The pilot or the guide may announce the miqat.
Be ready before the announcement. A pilgrim flying from Riyadh to Jeddah for Umrah missed the announced miqat by four or five minutes. Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen advised entering ihram as soon as the pilot gives notice: “Five minutes in a plane covers a long distance” (IslamQA).
Our packages from London, Birmingham and Manchester come with a written quote that names the route, so you know your last flight.
Can you enter ihram before the miqat?
Yes. Putting on the clothes early is only preparation: ihram itself begins with your intention. The scholars cited here allow the intention before the miqat, never after it, but differ on how early.
- Ibn Uthaymeen: an hour or two early, “there is nothing wrong with that”; delaying past the miqat is wrong (IslamQA).
- IslamWeb: at the miqat line, or directly before it to be safe.
- Hanafi school: entering ihram early is “in fact superior”, if you are confident you can keep its restrictions for longer (Ustadh Suheil Laher, Qibla).
Saudipedia notes that you may enter ihram at your own country’s airport if you might cross the miqat first. The restrictions begin with the intention: see the rules of ihram.
Is Jeddah a miqat?
Jeddah is not one of the five miqat: it lies inside their boundary. So the fatwas cited here say a pilgrim flying in from the UK for Umrah should already be in ihram on landing.
Jordan’s Iftaa’ Department says a pilgrim flying to Jeddah may not enter ihram there, because the city is “within the Miqat”. IslamWeb adds that if you land in Jeddah, “it is impermissible to delay Ihram after the Miqat”.
Sheikh ‘Atiyyah Saqr, a former head of Al-Azhar’s Fatwa Committee, differs. In his view, air travellers “take the same ruling as the people of the place of arrival”: landing in Jeddah, they enter ihram there (IslamOnline). This guide gives no ruling: if it matters to you, ask a qualified scholar.
People who live in Jeddah enter ihram from their homes (Saudipedia). If you are in Jeddah for another reason and only then decide on Umrah, you enter ihram where you are (IslamQA).
If your trip starts in Madinah
If you fly into Madinah first, you do not need ihram for that flight. You enter ihram at Dhul Hulayfah, known today as Abyar Ali, when you leave Madinah for Makkah.
IslamWeb gave this answer to a pilgrim flying from Egypt for Umrah. If your group lands in Madinah first, visit Madinah, then enter ihram “from the miqat of the people of Medina”, now called Abyar Ali. Saudipedia places it on the western side of Wadi al-Aqiq.
Before you set off, ask your group guide whether the transfer stops at the miqat. If it does not, put on your ihram clothes in Madinah before you leave, so you are ready to make your intention at the miqat.
Going by train instead? Read about ihram on the Haramain train.
If you are already in Makkah
If you are already in Makkah and want to perform Umrah, go outside the Haram to enter ihram, for example to Masjid Aisha at al-Tan’im.
The practice goes back to Aisha. The Prophet ﷺ told her brother, Abdur-Rahman, to take her to al-Tan’im so that she could perform Umrah from there (Sahih al-Bukhari 1784). IslamQA gives the same advice today: “go out of the Haram” first.
Saudipedia names al-Taneem, al-Ju’ranah and Arafat as places outside the Haram where the people of Makkah enter ihram for Umrah. Masjid al-Taneem, the mosque known as Masjid Aisha, stands 7.5 km north of the Grand Mosque (Saudipedia).
If you pass the miqat without ihram
If you meant to perform Umrah and passed the miqat without ihram, go back to that miqat and enter ihram there. If you do, no sacrifice is due “according to scholarly consensus”, says the fiqh encyclopaedia al-Mawsu’ah al-Fiqhiyyah, quoted by IslamQA.
If you do not go back, then “according to the majority of scholars” a sheep is due, slaughtered in Makkah for the poor (IslamQA, Saudipedia).
The schools differ on one case: you entered ihram after the miqat and then went back to it. The Malikis and Hanbalis still require a sacrifice, says the same encyclopaedia. For the Hanafi school, Shaykh Yusuf Shabbir says there is no penalty if you return and say the Talbiyah at the miqat (IslamicPortal).
If you had not firmly decided on Umrah when you passed, enter ihram where you decide (IslamQA), or, in Makkah, outside the Haram (IslamQA).
Before you travel, ask a qualified scholar or the group guide on your package; this guide gives no ruling of its own.
What do you do at the miqat?
At the miqat, you make your intention for Umrah and begin the Talbiyah, already dressed for ihram. IslamWeb gives the words of intention as “Labbayk Allahumma-Bi-‘Umrah”. This is the Talbiyah of the Prophet ﷺ, as Ibn Umar reported it:
لَبَّيْكَ اللَّهُمَّ لَبَّيْكَ، لَبَّيْكَ لاَ شَرِيكَ لَكَ لَبَّيْكَ، إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ وَالنِّعْمَةَ لَكَ وَالْمُلْكَ، لاَ شَرِيكَ لَكَ
Transliteration: Labbaika Allahumma labbaik, Labbaika la sharika Laka labbaik, Inna-l-hamda wan-ni’mata Laka walmulk, La sharika Laka
Meaning: “I respond to Your call O Allah, I respond to Your call, and I am obedient to Your orders, You have no partner, I respond to Your call All the praises and blessings are for You, All the sovereignty is for You, And You have no partners with you.”
Reference: Sahih al-Bukhari 1549 (transliteration and meaning: sunnah.com’s English).
A woman on her period still enters ihram at the miqat, but waits until she is pure and has done ghusl to perform Umrah (IslamQA). For other duas, see the Talbiyah and other duas for Umrah; for what comes next, how to perform Umrah, step by step.
Questions UK pilgrims ask about the miqat
How many miqat points are there?
There are five. Dhul Hulayfah, al-Juhfah, Qarn al-Manazil and Yalamlam are named in a hadith of Ibn Abbas (Sahih al-Bukhari 1524); Dhat Irq is named in other reports. Each serves the people of its region and anyone who passes through it intending Hajj or Umrah.
What is the closest miqat to Makkah?
Of the five, Qarn al-Manazil is the closest, about 75 km from Makkah by Saudipedia’s figures. If you are already in Makkah, you enter ihram for Umrah outside the Haram instead. Masjid al-Taneem, known as Masjid Aisha, is one such place, 7.5 km north of the Grand Mosque.
Is Taif a miqat?
The city itself is not one of the five. Qarn al-Manazil, known today as al-Sayl al-Kabir, lies about 55 km north of Taif. Saudipedia also lists Wadi Muharram, about 10 km north-west of Taif, which scholars identified for pilgrims from Taif.
Is Masjid Aisha a miqat?
It is not one of the five. Masjid Aisha, or Masjid al-Taneem, stands on a boundary of the Haram, 7.5 km north of the Grand Mosque (Saudipedia). People already in Makkah go there to enter ihram for Umrah, as Aisha did.
Can I put on ihram at home in the UK?
You can put on the ihram clothes at home: Jordan’s Iftaa’ Department allows this. Saudipedia says you may enter ihram itself at your own country’s airport if you might cross the miqat first. In the Hanafi school, entering ihram early is better if you can keep its restrictions.
Your next step
The miqat points mark where ihram begins. On a flight from the UK, the fatwas cited here place it before the miqat line; from Madinah, it begins at Dhul Hulayfah. If you are unsure, ask before you travel.
Every package includes a group guide or scholar who helps with the rites.
Planning your Umrah from the UK? Send us your dates and ask for a written quote on WhatsApp, with every cost itemised, or compare our Umrah packages first.
Reviewed by Babul Haram Travels team · editorial review 24 October 2026. Official pages checked on 24 October 2026. For a personal religious ruling, consult a qualified scholar.
Hadith from Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim carry no separate grade on sunnah.com; the Sunan Abi Dawud hadith shows the grade given there.
Photo sources: Location photographs are credited under each image and do not show our customers or a particular booking. Featured photo: the miqat mosque at Dhul Hulayfah (photographed 2016), resized and cropped for this guide; photo by Imam Khairul Annas, CC BY-SA 4.0.
