Q: My company intends to mobilize foreign experts to Israel. Where do I start?
A: The employment of foreign experts in Israel requires proper planning according to business needs as well as technical preparation that meets both the objectives and timeline. We, at Raviv Sivan Law Firm, being experienced in supporting dozens of various projects, understand the importance of first analysing the client’s intentions and then putting up a plan that ensures matching of expectations to align with reality.
When serving a client, we have the responsibility of matching his / her needs as well as the strict Israeli authorities demands.
Any mistake or misguidance may cause damage to an entire business project and our aim is to avoid misfortunate circumstances by sticking to honesty and transparency.
Therefore, to start the right way, you will be required to share information regarding the project’s schedule, the scope of work, the amount of people involved, their identity, nationality, education, experience, expected length of stay in country and more.
By sharing this information beforehand, we can guide you through the process accurately and make sure that the work visas phase will be successful so you can focus on your own missions.
Q: Who requires a work visa?
A: Any person who comes to work in Israeli territory.
Q: What types of visas are there?
A: For experts, there are 3 major types of work visas to Israel:
A 1-year B1 Expert Work Visa (extendable up to 63 months)
A 90-day B1 visa for short periods or for specific projects.
An Expedited 90-day B1 Work Visa for short periods or specific projects, only relevant to nationals who are exempt from an Entry permit to Israel, according to the Entry into Israel Order (Visa Exemption). Click here for a list of entry visa requitements to Israel per nationality.
A 2-year B1 visa for executives of international companies (up to two visas at this category per company).
Q: How long does it take to obtain a Work Visa to Israel?
A: As a thumb rule, from the time of application, a 1-year B1 Work Visa will take 3-4 weeks.
A 90-day B1 Work Visa processing will take up to 7 days.
Q: What is the process of obtaining a Work Visa?
A: The first phase is applying for a Work Permit at the Israeli Population Authority.
Once obtaining a Work Permit, one can ask for a Work Visa to match the commencement and expiry dates as indicated in the Work Permit obtained.
Q: What do you need to get me a B1 Work Visa to Israel?
A: We need the employee’s passport photocopy, CV, diplomas, an explanation letter, a Power of Attorney, and an application form that we prepare, which will be signed by an authorised signatory of the company before a notary and then apostilled at the local relevant ministry abroad.
In case the inviting company has a local representative in Israel, he (or she) can sign the Visa Application forms and Power of Attorney before us instead of legalization abroad.
Q: Does the process require physical paperwork?
A: The entire process is done digitally, but we need the originals for filing purposes.
Q: What are the conditions for obtaining a Work Permit and Work Visa to Israel?
A: The expertise of the employee must be demonstrated to the Population Authority, which reviews the application and can approve or reject it on its sole discretion.
This is done by properly presenting the experts’ CV and diplomas and by drafting an elaborated explanation letter to convince the authorities that the expert’s expertise is unique and indeed required for the job that he or she are being mobilized for.
It is important to make sure that the passport that the expert holds will be valid for at least 6 months after the requested visa expiry date.
Bear in mind that for a 1-year Work Visa, you undertake that during the period in which the expert is hired by you in Israel, he will be paid double the monthly average salary (in January 2024, ILS 12,651).
A 90-day visa only requires a salary equivalent to the minimum wage in Israel (in January 2024, ILS 5,572).
Q: Can I use an Experts’ Work Visa for various personnel?
A: No, every Work Visa is being issued per a specific expert.
However, in case that during the project you require to replace an expert, you can apply for a replacement, thus obtain a renewed Work Visa for the new expert.
Q: Is there a limit to the amount of personnel that can be applied for?
A: No. You can apply for any amount of personnel, if you can prove that they are all necessary for the completion of the job.
Q: What are the costs involved in issuing a Work Visa?
A: The costs of obtaining a Work Visa to Israel:
Our handling fees. Approach us for a quote.
A work permit application fee (fixed fee of ILS 1,340 in 2024), for any type of Work Visa.
A Visa fee, depending on the actual requested visa length. A 1-year visa fee may cost approximately ILS 11,500, while a 90-day visa fee will be approximately ILS 5,400 (in 2024).
Please have a look at the Deposits chapter below to plan better.
Q: What are the main procedural differences between an Expedited 90-day Work Visa and a 1-year Work Visa?
A: The Expedited 90-day category is intended only to national who do not require an entry permit to Israel. These experts can enter Israel immediately after obtaining the Work Permit by the Population Authority, however within 2 days after entering Israel, they must also obtain a Work Visa and pay the required authority fee.
The 1-year (or 2-year) Work Visa requires that after obtaining the Work Permit, the expert must approach an Israeli consulate abroad before arriving in Israel. He will then appear before the consul for a short interview, and if all goes well, he will be given a one-time 30-day entry permit to Israel. This entry permit allows him to enter Israel and then we make sure to complete his visa process so he can hold the status of a legal foreign expert (B1 Visa).
The normal (not-expedited) 90-day category, also requires the expert to appear before an Israeli consul, as described at the 1-year visa paragraph above.
Q: What if my expert does not have any professional diploma to present:
A: There are various solutions to this challenge, please approach us for further guidance.
Q: Are work visas extendable?
A: Yes, a 1-year Work Visa in Israel can be extended to up to 63 months.
A 90-day Work Visa cannot be extended, as the maximum stay per calendar year at this category is 90 days. However, it is technically possible to ask for a 1-year Work Visa after the expiration of the 90-day Work visa at the same calendar year. Please reach out for a further explanation.
Q: Why do we need you to take care of our Work Visas?
A: As professional business immigration lawyers, we have the experience and know-how to provide an accurate solution to our clients.
Not only we guide the client through the procedure, we also actively assist in collecting data, preparing forms, and of course submitting them to the authorities and make sure they are being processed in a timely manner.
It is possible to apply autonomously but since the procedure is sometimes complicated due to heavy bureaucracy, it is not recommended.
Rejection of Work Visa applications by the Israeli Population Authority and other authorities are common if done wrong and this may result in major delays to the entire project.
Q: I applied for a Work Visa but was refused, what can I do?
A: Please feel free to approach us for an initial consultation on specific issues at no charge.
Q: Do I need to place a deposit as a condition to obtain a Work Permit?
A: Some nationals are required to place a deposit a Bank deposit at the Population Authority as a preliminary demand for obtaining a Work Permit. The demand is raised to ensure that the employer will fulfill all of the permit demands according to the Israeli laws. The deposit is released 6 months after the actual date in which the expert has left Israel.
Normally, we I ask for an early release of the deposit on behalf of our clients after the experts had left Israel.
Depending on the nationality and other terms, the deposit volume is determined by the authorities and can go up to ILS 50,000 per expert! Therefore it is important to properly prepare for this on the budgetary aspect.
Q: How do you extend an expert visa for more than a year?
A: In the case of an annual visa, subject to compliance with the conditions of the permit and the employment of the expert according to Israeli law, it is possible to request the extension of his work up to 63 months. The request to extend the permit must be submitted at least 60 days before the current permit expires. The extension procedure is not very different from that of the new need, although the exeprt does not have to go throgh the Israeli consulate abroad to receive the renewed visa.
For 90 day Work Permits in the expedited track, it is not possible to extend beyond 90 days in a calendar year.
For 90 day Work Permits in the normal track, you can apply for an extension, similar to the procedure of applying for a year.
Q: Can I bring my family with me as a foreign expert working in Israel?
A: In case you obtained a 1 year work visa to Israel, you can request to be accompanied by your spouse and children under the age of 18, however none of them will be permitted to work in Israel based on your B1 Work Visa.
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