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10 New Countries Will Be Added to List of ‘Red’ Countries by Midnight Tomorrow, December 21, 2021:

The Israeli Government announced earlier today that as of tomorrow midnight Tuesday, December 21, 2021, following countries will be added to the list of ‘red’ countries due to the “rapid increase” in cases of the Omicron variant:

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United States

Italy

Belgium

Switzerland

Morocco

Germany

Hungary

Portugal

Canada

Turkey


Israel has in recent days already added nine countries to the “red” list: the UK, Denmark, France, Spain, the United Arab Emirates, Ireland, Norway, Finland, and Sweden. South Africa and a slew of other African countries were added at the start of the month.


Under the current "red" countries regulations, there is a significant difference between Israeli nationals and non-Israeli nationals who visited red countries in the last 14 days before the travel to Israel: 

  • Non-Israeli citizens: are not allowed to enter Israel. No exceptions were provided to this regulation, even to those who have a B-1 Work Visa with Multiple Entry Visas. Any COVID-19 exceptional permit already provided to a foreign national for entry from any of these countries during the ban will be revoked at Midnight, Tuesday, December 21, 2021.  
  • Israeli Citizens: barred from traveling to these countries. Israelis who do return from these countries will be forced to enter State-Run COVID-19 Isolation Motel until their first COVID test comes back negative, but they must remain in home quarantine for seven days, even if they are fully vaccinated with a booster.

Daily Updates of Banned Countries and the Difficulty to Plan Travels Ahead


The decision came a few days after coalition party leaders agreed to update the list of banned countries daily. This move is expected to reduce flights abroad by making it difficult to plan trips in advance and putting every travel to Israel in the coming weeks at a risk.

 

Nachman Ash, the Health Ministry’s director-general said during a press briefing on Sunday (December 12, 2021) that:

 

Whoever is planning to travel abroad at this time needs to know that, upon their return, they are likely to go into full quarantine because the country will be declared a red country”. This quote relates to Israeli nationals.


KTA Recommendations

  • Foreign national with a B-1 work visa holder that is currently in one of the newly added countries or visited those countries in the last 14 days: to consider pulling the travel for arrival to Israel until Midnight, Tuesday, December 21, 2021
  • Dependents with a B-2 visitor visa and multiple entry visa that is currently in one of the newly added countries or visited those countries in the last 14 days, to consider pulling the travel for arrival Midnight, Tuesday, December 21, 2021
     

COVID-19 Red Countries FAQ

Q: What does the term ‘red country’ mean for foreign nationals?

A: A ‘red country’ is one that foreign nationals cannot enter Israel from.

 

Q: What are the chances of my country becoming ‘red’?

A: It is unclear which countries will become ‘red’. The decision of the country’s “color” is being taken according to the Israeli government’s decision which is based on the COVID-19 morbidity of the specific country.

 

Q: What determines a ‘red country’?

A: A ‘red’ classification simply means that it is a destination of high COVID-19 infection risk. This type of classification comes after a decision-making process and joint analysis of the Ministry of Health with other relevant governmental ministries. The assessment goes by the following:

a. The number of new cases, imported by travelers entering Israel from a country, is higher than 50 (Over the past 30 days). OR

b. The number of new cases, imported by travelers entering Israel from a country, is higher than 10 (Over the past 30 days) AND is higher than 0.5% of total travelers entering Israel from that country. OR c. High levels of morbidity and new cases in a country (according to ICL and IHME Models), combining the frequency of VOCs, and the ratio of positive cases per total travelers entering Israel from that country.

 

Q: Is there an exception provided for foreign nationals arriving from ‘red countries’?

A: So far, no exceptions were made for foreign nationals, including business people, foreign nationals that already work in Israel and need to return or their dependents, new employees, etc.

 

Q: Can I travel to Israel from a red country through another non-red country?

A: If an individual travels from a red country to a non-red country, they will need to stay in that country for at least 14 days before traveling to Israel.   For example: If an employee with a valid B-1 work visa and multiple entry visa is in Spain (currently classified as a ‘red country’), and from there travels to Greece (an ‘orange country’), they will need to stay in Greece for at least 14 days before traveling to Israel.

 

     

KTA COVID-19 Hotline

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KTA will operate a designated special emergency response team today and tomorrow (Monday-Tuesday December 21-22) 08:30-17:00 to proactively direct our clients as well as operate a Hotline for telephone calls: +97236138202. Please do call us if any questions. 

   

Best Regards,


Amit Acco, Senior Partner, amit@ktalegegal.com


KAN-TOR & ACCO 

Global Site: www.ktalegal.com 


Disclaimer: The content herein is provided for information purposes only. It is not intended as legal advice. Readers are advised not to act upon the contained information without professional advice. No portion of this newsletter may be reproduced without express permission. © Kan-Tor & Acco law firm


The COVID-19 information is gathered from various public media sources at the courtesy of KTA to its clients and website visitors. Due to the rapid, sometimes daily changes in policy, we urge any traveler to get updated at the official government website before planning or taking any international travel to or from Israel.

 
Kan-Tor & Acco | 12 M. Begin St. Ramat Gan Israel