The Immigration Department responsible for the issuance of Malaysian passports has stated that it had issued over 1.6 million passports from January 1 to June 30 this year.
The figure is significantly higher compared to 2022 when the government issued about 1.1 million for the period from Jan to July, the surge in applications is notably due to the opening of borders and pent-up demand for traveling abroad.
This comes from also the implentation of online passport application by the Home Ministry from June 1, starting with three selected Immigration Department branches in Kelana Jaya, Wangsa Maju and Kajang.
Home Affairs Minister, Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasution Ismail, said based on the records of the Malaysian Immigration Department, the three branches involved were chosen because they received a high rate of applications.
The three branches were also chosen because they have a good internet network, thus enabling online passport services to be implemented.
“Not only is the internet network 100%, the penetration of the 5G internet network in the Klang Valley has also reached over 90%.
“So we chose these three passport offices because they have a fast internet network and 100% internet penetration allowing applications to be made online,” he said.
He explained that exceptions for applications at the counter or by walk-in are still allowed for 6 categories.
