PETALING JAYA: Following the reopening of the country’s borders, Malaysians are flooding immigration department’s online appointment booking system to apply for or renew their passports.

Based on our random checks with the immigration department’s online appointment system or STO, applicants will have to wait until mid-May or even June if they book their appointments today to apply for new passports or renew their passports at immigration departments in urban areas of Selangor, Perak, Johor and Penang.

In some branches with high human traffic such as Puchong in Selangor, they may have to wait until mid-July!

On the other hand, you can get an appointment within days in places like Kuala Kubu Bharu in Selangor or Muar in Johor.

According to immigration department’s hotline staff, members of the public will no longer be able to walk in any branch to have their passports renewed beginning this month. They will have to first book online for an appointment.

“Applicants have to show their appointment time before they can renew their passports at the counters.

“If they have successfully applied online, they will be notified of the pick-up time.”

Visit MyOnline Passport to renew your passport.

Mr Lim, who has successfully booked an appointment online, told Sin Chew Daily he was told to book an appointment online when he visited the UTC to have his passport renewed.

On April 8, after checking the appointment dates for several immigration branches in Selangor, he found the earliest available appointment on April 20 at Ulu Langant branch.

“But I still have to wait for 12 days. That’s considered very fast already!”

Wong, another applicant who applied to renew his passport through MyOnline Passport, said this is just a simplified ticket queue system, while the photo uploaded is not to be put on your passport but for identification purposes only, adding that applicants will still need to take their photographs at the counter.