73. Passport application to be done online

The Home Affairs Ministry plans to introduce a paperless international passport application system this year.

Its Deputy Minister Datuk Tan Chai Ho said a study on implementing the system, conducted by the ministry, was in the final stages.

Under the proposed system, the Immigration Department and the Registration Department will cooperate so that the international passport application can be done on-line.

“The applicants no longer need to fill up forms. All they need to do is present their MyKads to the officers manning the Immigration Department’s service counters,” he told reporters after attending an MCA members meeting, near here yesterday.

He said under the existing system, applicants have to fill up a host of forms to apply for their passports, and this can be troublesome for those who are not used to such procedures.

“We will implement it this year so that the public can benefit from a less troublesome service. But the date of implementation has not been fixed as the study is still in the final stages,” he said.

Tan also said the ministry planned to introduce the two-hour international passport application service at all the immigration departments in stages.

Currently, only the immigration departments in Langkawi and Melaka are offering such a service. The new Immigration Department in Wangsa Maju in Kuala Lumpur will join the club this Jan 15.

Tan said the service will then be introduced to other Immigration Departments in the country except for those in Sabah and Sarawak.

“We have introduced the 24-hour international passport application service at all the immigration departments throughout the country,” he said.

– BERNAMA: borneopost 6/12/07