It said the Malaysian Embassy in Riyadh had checked with the Saudi Arabian Foreign Ministry and as of Dec 6, no royal decree had been issued by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman Bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud on the matter.

The Saudi Arabian Embassy in Kuala Lumpur also confirmed that there was no new instruction on the visa fee from the Saudi Arabian government, it said.

“Therefore, the media and the public are urged not to believe unverified information to avoid any confusion,” it said in a statement here today.

The ministry said any change would be announced by the Saudi Arabian government through its embassies and official media.

The new visa fee announced by Saudi Arabia is applicable to all countries.

The new fee structure includes a single-entry visa that will cost visitors 2,000 riyal (about RM2,400), and is applicable to all, except for first-time haj and umrah pilgrims.