For the past few days, it has been a crazy rush to renew my domestic helper's visa.
Ok our bad. We were not exactly on top of her visa's expiry. For the first 2 seconds, I did what came naturally - I panicked. Then I googled for any advice I can get from strangers or government sites. I realised, unlike us, everyone seemed to be pretty much on top of expiration dates.
So as my little domestic helper is very much here because of lil' muachi, I will blog about it here.
LMM advice:
1) Recover from your little panic attack after you see the expired date on that visa.
2) Decide whether you want to go with the Agency or do it yourself.
3) For Agency, they will guide you step-by-step but you will obviously pay a premium. Convenient, but you will burn a hole in your wallet. They will sort out all documentation and drive your helper wherever she needs to be.
4) If you have the time and decide to have a go at it yourself. Read on.
First Stop: Immigration
What you need:
- Original passport
- Photocopy of passport with details, visa details and your IC.
- Cash (to pay fine (if you are unable to get away with it) and special pass RM100
- Your Domestic Helper (for them to issue the special pass)
The immigration HQ at Putrajaya is in Precint 2 (according to their website) or 3 (according to GPS). They are side by side. So it doesnt matter. Once you reach putrajaya, there will be signs. Most of the people park outside. You will see this parking area with lots of cars but on rocky 'untreated' ground. It's free. So dont know about you, I parked there as it was bright and I was sure I would be able to locate my car.
What you need to do:
1) Now if you are late like me and MOTH, you will need to go to the 2nd floor to get a letter issued to say that the visa has expired and you will be whacked by "compound" (aka the penalty fee).
2) Proceed to the 4th floor to make payment.
3) APPEAL for discount or waiver like you are appealing to stay out of prison. Think of the money you will save.
Note: Penalty charges are imposed on a daily basis. The longer it has expired, the higher your compound is. (Dont believe everything your agency tells you). If you give a decent reason for your tardiness and you are lucky to get an officer with a big heart, s/he will waive the fee. All you need to pay will be RM100 for a special pass. This is to allow your helper to stay on legally while you perform the rest of the needful before applying for her working visa.
http://www.imi.gov.my/index.php/ms/
2nd Stop: FOMEMA
What you need:
- Photocopy of passport and visa page.
- Bank draft, money or postal order (RM190 for female)
- Complete the form for renewal (you can get this from their website as below)
What you need to do:
- Go to FOMEMA office. I went to the one in Solaris Dutamas. They are at Block D. You can park at Publika. It's a bit hard to find but you will be able to with some searching.
- Submit all of the above
- Receive a copy of FOMEMA printed form
Note: Before I went to FOMEMA, I dropped by the postal office at Plaza Mt Kiara to buy postal order.
When completing the application form, you will need to choose the clinic you prefer to take your helper to for her medical check-up. There will be a list of clinics available on their website with its corresponding places for x-rays.
They say it'll take 10 days before the results are available online.
http://www.fomema.com.my/
3rd Stop: Hartamas immigration
What you need:
- Original passport
- Cash of RM516 if helper is from Philippines
What you need to do:
- Go to Kompleks KDN in Hartamas
You can get the details from here: http://passport.com.my/Immigration_Offices/Kompleks_KDN_Jalan_Duta.htm
- Go early so you can find parking. There's only limited spaces in the compound
- Go to the 1st Floor - foreign/ domestic helpers office (just take the escalator near the entrance)
- Take a number, pass the passport to the officer. I believe this is where they will verify with Fomema on medical results
- Pay at the "Juruwang" (cashier) counter
- Go back to the first officer with the passport
- After a few minutes, the passport will be returned to you with the newly extended visa
The whole process lasted about maybe 20 minutes for me. It took a bit longer as the cashier was late coming in (I was there around 8+am).
This step is really fairly simple. The rooms and the building is really quite pleasant. I believe it is new.
OR Myeg
You can also get the assistance of Myeg to renew the visa. Just log into their website. You will need to wait 7 days for the visa and there will be a premium charged. But the visa is delivered straight to you.
http://www.myeg.com.my/
So there you have it. Bear in mind that the passport must have one year validity for the visa to be issued.
All the above is correct as of date of posting, please do refer to the relevant websites/authorities for updates etc.
I hope this helps!
No comments:
Post a Comment