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Introduction of the Blog and WA group guidelines

  Welcome to the first TAU international Volunteers-managed blog! This blog has been created to give complementary information to the graduated students of TAU and to create a community where we can share thoughts and information. This blog is not affiliated to any of the TAU services or bureaucratic apparatus and it is meant to be an informal tool where people can be updated, alongside the Whatsapp group and the informal word-of-mouth. Each student or post-doc is more than welcome to approach and participate in the creation of this blog, acting as a volunteer (with a little basic commitment) but also as an user, where they can collect any sort of information. All of the content posted on this blog is under the responsibility of the person who wrote it and posted it. UPDATE 06.11.23  Guidelines for the WhatsApp group  1.Respect & Kindness: Treat all members with respect and kindness. Be mindful of your tone and language.  2. Stay On Topic: Keep discussions releva...
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New visa situation because of the "Passport Marathon"

 This month again (for the N time, where N is a number bigger than 1) the Ministry of Interior changed again its modus operandi, creating a new situation for the offices.

The idea behind this is to advantage the Israeli population in the renewal of their passports, which was delayed and inefficient for several months.

To understand more, follow this link on The Jerusalem Post.

This inevitably affects the visa process again, especially for those whose visas and licenses were set to end by 30.9.23.

The following visas are automatically extended for 6 months period:

  • a1 (eligible under the right of return)
  • (a2)students/trainees/interns
  • (a3)Clergy
  • a4 (companion to a3 a2 )
  • (a5)temporary resident
  • (b1) working visa
  • permits for temporary stay in Israel for Palestinians (for family reunion and humanitarian reasons)

Here's the link of the official website of the Government.

A nice article has been written on this page, especially as far as the international couples are concerned.

Around May 15th, TAU International Visa office released a form to collect information about the status of your visa. At this link, you can upload your data for renewal and/ or extension of the visa. If you haven’t received a message from the Ministry of Interior regarding the extension of your visa, please fill out our form as well.

Just keep in mind that the visa is extended automatically to avoid people rushing to the offices. This means that once the date printed on your visa is expired, your extension DOES NOT automatically include the multiple entry, which means that you are restricted to the country unless you request and pay for the multiple entry stamp.

This means that you might be put in line with the mass of people renewing their passports and other visas, without any sort of appointment (see the links above, as the people renewing their passports are NOT required to get an appointment). This needs to be confirmed by the International office, which is the main and most reliable source of information on this matter.

For any personal/special inquiry, please contact Tamar (visains@tauex.tau.ac.il).

DISCLAIMER: the following information comes from the report of the individuals who updated us in the Whatsapp chat about their experience.

Answers we can give so far: 

1)My visa is expiring  before the end of September 2023 and I want to travel in the next half of a year at least. What to do?

    You need to go DIRECTLY to the Ministry of Interior and put yourself in the queue to get the Multiple entry stamp, as once your visa expires, it gets automatically elongated (or at least it should be) but only for your permanence within the state of Israel. We know that some people were able to get the stamp even before their visa expired.

    In particular, we know that the working days and hours are Sunday/Monday/Tuesday or Thursday between 08:00-09:00 AM at the Ministry of Interior. 

Tamar from the International visa office can definitely help you figuring out if your visa has been elongated or not, provided that your visa is expiring soon. This information cannot be disclosed if your visa is expiring in months from now. 

2) Will this mean that people with an appointment should still go to their appointment for renewal?

    Appointments have been dismissed and from now on there is no need to take an appointment. Just show up (as early as possible). In specific cases, whenever there is absolute necessity of Visa Renewal, an appointment will be set through the International visa office.

3) I did not receive an SMS, as other people did. 

    This does not seem to impact your admission to the Ministry of Interior. 

4) What do I need to get the stamp?

    You should bring your passport and a credit card valid in Israel in order to be able to pay for the re-entry permit.    

    You need to pay half of the price of the visa (around 185NIS) and to fill the form from the Ministry authority (LINK). Just in case, bring 2 passport pictures.

 5) I need to go abroad and that place requires me a valid visa. What to do?

 we are not aware of this situation, yet. If someone has news, please update us!   

Keep an eye on this post because it will be updated in the future!

6) They denied the elongation of my visa

    Tamar highlighted in her last (29.05.23) email that the elongation of the visa is not always automatic. In fact, she wrote:" If your visa has not been automatically extended and it has expired/will expire soon, than you need to get it extended – this cannot be done without an appointment, and must be done with our assistance".

We know about a case of a person whose visa was not automatically elongated because this person was NOT in the country at the time the Ministry took the decision to open the "Passport Marathon Mode".

This means that this person will need to schedule a specific appointment (through Int. Visa Office) and get their visa RENEWED (which means they will need all of the papers typically presented and to pay the full price of the visa).



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