This has been my third time going to our Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur to settle my Passport renewal. This time around, the procedures were totally different. We are undergoing a different situation where traveling is restricted to minimize any possible spread of the Covid19 infection in Malaysia.
Allow me to share with you my experiences in processing the renewal of my Passport at the Embassy during this time.
a. Secure online appointment at the Philippines Embassy
Before heading to the Embassy, you must take an online appointment at the Embassy’s portal. Your appointment date follows the available slot according to the first letter of your family name.
If the slot is full and your passport expiration date is already going to be over, I would suggest you call our Philippine Embassy Help Center (03-2148-4233) to seek further assistance/ advice.
b. Prepare all your documents for your renewal transaction
Before going to the embassy, ensure that you have complied with all the requirements to process your transaction.
The checklists are:
A confirmed online appointment which you need to present to the Embassy Security guard before you are allowed to get inside to process your transaction. Please don’t give a fake appointment letter as they have a master list of those expected applicants on that day.
Dully accomplished renewal application form which is downloadable at the Philippine website.
Your current e-Passport
A photocopy of your e-Passport (info page)
In case you need to provide other personal details to the Embassy, please bring other supporting documents about your identity so you don’t need to be worried during your application.
c. Get a travel permit for interstate
If you are traveling from a different state, then you need to get an Permit Pergerakan Perintah Kawalan Pergerakan Bersyarat (PKPB).
I need to secure a travel permit to the nearest police station in my place. I downloaded the form online and I need to indicate the time and date that I will be leaving my place to go to Embassy and a date and time that I need to get back to my place. If you will not fill this up, you will not be approved to go for interstate travel.
They will require you to bring two copies. One for them and one for you.
Make sure that all information is correct especially your Passport number and the car details which you will be showing during spot-checking in Kuala Lumpur and when going back to Johor Bahru right after the toll at Kempas, Johor.
d. Drive your own to get to the Embassy
Driving to the embassy is the most convenient this time as public transport is not available.
It took about 4.5 - 5 hours for me to drive to our embassy from Johor Bahru. There was no jam and in between, I need to take a break at the R&R for a toilet break and also to get some food. I used Waze App and so far it helped me to get straight to the embassy conveniently.
If you don’t have a car, then you can take a domestic flight at the Senai International Airport to Kuala Lumpur then from Kuala Lumpur International Airport, you can use the train to get to KL Sentral and from KL Sentral, transit to another train to get to KLCC so it’s easy for you to take grab car to the Philippine Embassy.
e. Submission of my documents
Upon submitting all my documents, you need to follow your transaction number which the guard will be giving you once you enter the office. Don’t worry, they are very accommodating.
The transaction was very simple. This includes the submission of the document followed by a payment of RM288 for the renewal fee (10 years) and the last one is the encoding of your details, biometrics, and photo-taking of yourself which took about 10-15 minutes.
During the photo session, if you want to look fresh on your passport info page, make sure that you take a good rest so that your face is not oily. Just what the embassy officer mentioned, just relax and if you need to put a bit of foundation to your face, then by all means you can do it so at least you don’t look haggard in your photo especially if you been tired from a long-distance journey.
f. Getting my new Passport
The release of your new Passport can either:
a. Via courier
By choosing this option, you need to buy a prepaid envelope from Post Laju worth RM10-11. If you choose this, you will be required to sign a waiver from our Embassy that once the Passport is sent out to the courier service provider, the Embassy is not responsible for any loss.
According to the embassy officer, there had been some cases of new passports lost and the impact is more costly. You need to undergo another set of transactions like filing an affidavit of loss etc (it's about RM1000 not including the time that you need to spend just to settle this case).
b. Self pick up
The officer advised taking this option since it's more secured. This option will lead you to go back again to the embassy but your documents especially your passport are secured. This option will avoid any possible inconvenience to you when your passport is lost.
How long will I need to wait for my passport?
According to the officer, in order for you to know the status of your passport application, you need to visit the passport finder at the Philippine Embassy website and just type in your Service Number (this is located at the receipt of your passport renewal fee) and your last name.
You will also be receiving an SMS from the Embassy that your passport is ready for pick up. When picking up your passport, you need to make sure that you follow the schedule of releasing documents in the Embassy. It follows according to the first letter of your family name.