So, I am going to Bali in August and my passport is expiring in October, bad bad. The passport needs to be valid for more than 6 months from the embarkation date.

At first, they came out with this express service which only takes 3 days to prepare your renewed passport. And then later, it became 1 day. And now I heard it only takes 3 hours, granted you send in your application 3 hours before the 5:30pm closing time.

CHECKLIST

Before you grab your passport and head to Pusat Bandar Damansara, here’s a couple of things you should bring.
1. Current passport
2. RM300 (or RM600 for a 64-page passport, still 5-years validity period though) (RM50 or RM100 notes)
3. MyKad
4. Your thumb (to authenticate yourself against the MyKad)
5. 1 photocopy of your MyKad (back and front)
6. 1 passport sized photograph (of course they want a recent photo)
7. Something (PSP, iPod, magazine, laptop) to pass your time (2 hours at least)

But fret not, if you don’t have items #5 and #6, you can easily photocopy your MyKad and have a passport sized photograph taken there on the spot. Even if you got items #5 and #6, the shop touts will ask you if you want a photograph or not. Smart.

Office hours, if I am not mistaken are from 9am - 5:30pm WEEKDAYS (of course). If you want to get it done on the same day, try reaching there at around 1pm. That way, you can drop your passport into the kiosk, have lunch, get to Bangsar Shopping Complex, and come back again to collect your completed passport, and then go home BEFORE rush hour starts.

Checklist completed, now head to Pusat Bandar Damansara, you guys should know where it is located. Head into the parking area, find Block I and park in the basement. You need make your way to P4 or P5 because that’s where the visitor’s parking is located. Anywhere above P4, the parking bays are all reserved, so don’t bother looking.

Parking rates (6am - 6pm):
1st hour: RM2.50
Consequent hours: RM1.20

KIPPAS

The first place you want to visit is the KIPPAS (Kios Pembaharuan Pasport) room. Just make sure you got everything in the checklist ready (if you did not photocopy or have a photo, have it done first). It’s located on Level 1 (or Ground floor, but for Pusat Bandar Damansara, it starts with 1, no Ground floor). It’s just beside the main road, close to the ramp to the Block I car park.

Once you enter the KIPPAS room, grab a small envelope from one of the tables there. You can put your photo and the MyKad photocopy inside. Do write your details on the front of the envelope but please DO NOT seal it yet. If you look around, you can see a height measure, so go and measure your height as you need to enter it into the kiosk later. The kiosk is very very easy to use, do not be afraid.

The first thing you do when you use the kiosk is to place your passport and MyKad into the related slots. Just follow the on screen instructions and after you manage to verify and authenticate your thumb prints, you then need to pay up. Just insert your notes one by one into the machine. You can now place your passport into the envelope and seal it up. After you pay the full amount, you can then dump the envelope into the machine and collect the receipt.

Time to have lunch or spend your 2 hours doing something. Maybe you can walk around HELP Institute and check out the courses they offer or even discuss with a counselor there. Or better still, just drive to Bangsar Shopping Center and check out York Shop.

After 2 hours

Now, get back to Block I and head back to the KIPPAS room but do not enter it. You have to enter the building via the main entrance (which is flanked by photocopy shops on both sides) and take the escalator to Level 2. Head to counter 16 and pass them your receipt. That time I went, they did not give me any number coupon, they just told me to wait in front of the counter and they will call out names. So yeah, just wait for your name to be called. If you wait more than an hour, just reconfirm with them and hope it all goes well. You can purchase a passport cover from the counter and it costs RM2.00.

That’s all!! Quickly head home before rush hour starts!!