Individual tourists who are innoculated against the coronavirus will be able to enter Israel starting 1 November according to a government decision.
By Erin Viner
Israel’s borders have largely been closed to foreigners since March 2020 upon the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Until now, only first-degree relatives of Israeli citizens and small groups of vaccinated tourists have been permitted to visit in recent months.
Prime Minister Naftali Bennett announced the decision to re-open the nation’s borders to vaccinated visitors following consultations yesterday with the Ministers of Health and Tourism and the respective Director Generals, the Transportation Ministry Director General, the National Coronavirus Project Manager, Director of the Public Health Services, the National Crossings Project Manager, the Deputy Attorney General, Assistant to the Defense Minister on Civil Defense, Deputy Director of the National Security Council, Finance Ministry Budget Director, Director of the Israel Airports Authority, Director of the Population and Immigration Authority and other professional officials.
The new plan is subject to cabinet approval and “will be updated in accordance with developments and the discovery of new variants,” said a joint statement.
Foreigners who have been administered vaccines within the last six months from Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, AstraZeneca, Johnson & Johnson, Sinovac and Sinopharm will be allowed into the country. Those who have recovered from COVID-19 may also enter Israel, subject to receiving one vaccine dose approved by the World Health Organization.
Bennett told his Cabinet ministers on Sunday, “as we are managing the gradual exit from the Delta wave, we are preparing the infrastructure for the ‘Omega’ scenario'” – which is the name of the latest emerging variant of the disease.
Jerusalem had been preparing to welcome tourists from abroad in June when local infections had plummeted to nearly zero, but that hope was postponed after the Delta variant hit the country and escalated the number of new cases.
Israel’s tourism sector is a major component of the national economy. A record high of 4.55 million travelers came to visit in pre-pandemic 2019, contributing ₪ 23 billion shekels ($7.2 billion or € 6,190,113.60) to Israel’s financial sector.
There are currently 14,754 active coronavirus cases in Israel, of whom 318 are considered “serious.”
Here is the specific list of criteria to visit Israel as of 1 November 2021:
The following persons are eligible to enter Israel in the framework of the plan:
- Foreign nationals who have been inoculated with two doses of the Pfizer vaccine at least seven days prior to their day of entry into Israel (7 days must have passed since their second dose upon their arrival into Israel, but no more than 180 days upon their leaving Israel).
- Foreign nationals who have been inoculated with two doses of the Moderna vaccine at least 14 days prior to their day of entry into Israel (14 days must have passed since their second dose upon their arrival into Israel, but no more than 180 days upon their leaving Israel).
- Foreign nationals who have been inoculated with one dose of the Johnson & Johnson vaccine at least 14 days prior to their day of entry into Israel (14 days must have passed since their second dose upon their arrival into Israel, but no more than 180 days upon their leaving Israel).
- Foreign nationals who have been inoculated with the Pfizer booster and at least seven days have passed, on the day of their entering Israel.
- Foreign nationals who have been inoculated with the Moderna, Sinovac Astra Zeneca and Johnson & Johnson booster and at least 14 days have passed, on the day of their entering Israel.
- Foreign nationals who have recovered from COVID-19 and who present proof of the results of a positive NAAT test at least 11 days prior to their day of entry into Israel (11 days must have passed since their NAAT test upon their arrival into Israel, but no more than 180 days upon their leaving Israel).
- Foreign nationals who have recovered from COVID-19 and have received at least one dose of the WHO-approved vaccines.
Groups that will be exempted from quarantine on the basis of their functioning like a capsule that stays together within their own group:
- Tourists who have been inoculated with a WHO-approved vaccine.
- The group functions in Israel like a ״capsule״, meaning they are only in contact with the people in their group – these groups will not have leisure time and their movement will be restricted in areas in which there is an increased risk of infection.
- Up to 2,000 tourists in a capsule per day (a more stringent plan will apply to mixed groups).
- Either a daily antigen tests or a PCR test every two days must be administered for 14 days from the day of entry into Israel.
- Tourists who have not been in red countries or countries under severe travel warnings in the 14 days prior to entering Israel.
- These groups are not required to undergo serological tests.