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Admin and council
Which council you are in, how to complain to it, and which counter to go to for your IC, passport or road tax.
Who to contact
MBPP or MBSP: which is yours, how to complain (aduan MBPP, aduan MBSP)
Penang has two city councils. MBPP runs Penang Island and MBSP runs Seberang Perai on the mainland. How to tell which one is yours, and the official apps, portals and phone lines each council publishes for complaints.
Step by step
Short-term rental licence in Penang: steps and fees (lesen TIP)
To rent out a home by the night in Penang you apply to your city council with an RM50 fee. Under the August 2026 gazette the licence (lesen TIP, Tempat Inap Persendirian, Malay for private accommodation) then costs RM1,000 a year for up to three rooms plus RM1,800 a year for each unit, and approved changes are expected from 1 January 2027.
Guides
IC and passport in Penang: JPN and Immigration offices, fees and documents
MyKad, birth and marriage registration are done at the National Registration Department (JPN); passports at the Immigration Department. Where their Penang offices are, including UTC KOMTAR and the mainland counters, their published hours, fees and the documents to bring.
Road tax and driving licence in Penang: MyJPJ, post office and JPJ counters
Renew a private car's road tax in the MyJPJ app or at a JPJ counter in Penang, and your driving licence there or at a post office. Road tax needs valid insurance and can be renewed up to two months before it expires; a car whose road tax lapsed more than three years ago needs a Puspakom inspection first.
Zakat Penang: how to pay Zakat MAINPP, counters and tax receipts
The practical side of paying zakat in Penang, the ways Zakat MAINPP takes payment, online, by salary deduction, at Pos Malaysia and at its own counters, where the counters are, and how to get and keep the receipt for the income tax rebate, as Zakat MAINPP and LHDN publish it.