The Israeli government is expected to announce that foreign tourists will be readmitted into the country from November 1. In the first stage, only tourists from some 40 countries, mainly EU countries, which have mutual vaccination agreements with Israel, will be allowed to enter Israel.

Only people who have had at least two vaccinations and have not passed six months since their second vaccination, or have had the third booster vaccination, will be allowed into Israel. These conditions will greatly reduce the number of tourists who qualify. Both groups and individual tourists will be allowed into the country.

In the second stage, Israel hopes to sign a mutual vaccination agreement with the US, which will allow in tourists from some states such as New York and California.

The Ministry of Health has yet to decide if it will demand that tourists from the US will also need to undergo a serological test to determine whether they have adequate levels of Covid antibodies. The Ministry of Health understands that such a test could act as a deterrent and may not stick by the demand. Such a test will not apply to tourists from Europe, under the mutual agreement with the EU.

The Ministry of Health is also considering allowing all vaccinated tourists to enter Israel from November 21, except from countries that require a visa to visit Israel.

As with all Israelis returning to Israel, foreign tourists will be required to show a negative tests from within 72 hours before boarding their flight and to take another PCR test on landing at Ben Gurion airport. They must remain in isolation until receiving those test results (within 24 hours).

Under the Israeli government’s plans, tourists in groups will be allowed into Israel, if they have gone more than six months since their second vaccination. Such groups will be limited to a maximum of 1,000 entering the country per day and these tourists will be required to undergo antigen tests at the entry to sites that they visit.

Under the plan, Israel will accept vaccinations recognized by the World Health Organization (WHO) including the various Chinese vaccinations but not Russia’s Sputnik vaccination.

The Ministry of Health said, “As soon as the plan is finalized, we will approve it for publication in an organized fashion.”

Published by Globes, Israel business news – en.globes.co.il – on October 11, 2021

Copyright of Globes Publisher Itonut (1983) Ltd. 2021