You can now get a visa to study in Malaysia within a week

It used to take international students who wished to study in Malaysia 19 days (or often much longer!) to obtain their student visa.

However, under new regulations, the wait time has been more than halved to just seven days.

According to The Sun Daily, the Immigration Department’s Visa, Pass and Permit Division Director Mohd Fardi Ahmad said students will now be able to download their Visa Approval Letter (VAL) on the day it is issued.

The move is expected to save students between three and six weeks of wait time, which is usually allocated for delivery of the hard-copy documents to the students’ home country via post or courier.

Student visa can now be obtained in 7 days https://t.co/dXRNHClC3s pic.twitter.com/TaxURnlZQn

— theSun (@theSundaily) March 8, 2018

And this is not the only improvement the Immigration Department has made to the student visa system in Malaysia in the last 12 months. In August last year, the visa process for students from 10 different countries was transformed.

Applicants from China, Myanmar, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan, Serbia and Montenegro are now able to obtain an e-visa online.

“Students from these 10 countries can apply online for the single-entry visa after receiving the VAL. Applications are processed within 48 hours, making it faster and easier for students to embark on their education journey to Malaysia,” Mohd Fardi said.

The move is expected to save students who want to study in Malaysia between three and six weeks of wait time. Source: Shutterstock

The progress of these students’ applications can now be tracked through the Student Application and Registration System simply by entering the applicant’s nationality and passport number.

The recent changes come after a partnering of the Education Malaysia Global Services (EMGS) and the Immigration Department. Together, they are attempting to make life that little bit easier for foreign applicants with the goal of boosting Malaysia’s international student population to 200,000 by 2020.

“One of the major hindrances for foreign students to study in Malaysia is obtaining the required documentation. But now, everything can be done online at a faster pace,” Mohd Fardi claimed at a press conference yesterday.

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