Israel to waive re-entry visa for returning OFWs

ISRAEL would no longer require re-entry visas for repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFW) planning to return to Israel once the war with Iran ends, according to its top envoy in Manila.

- By Adrian H. Halili

“We will not request from (OFWs) re-entry visas, meaning it’s easy for them to come back to work in Israel after they feel it’s safe,” Ambassador Ilan Fluss told reporters on Tuesday.

The Department of Foreign Affairs on June 21 raised the crisis alert level in Israel and Iran to alert level 3, calling for the voluntary repatriation of Filipinos.

“From the Israeli point of view, those who do not end the contract but request to leave, to take a break, when they can come back at this stage, they do not need a re-entry visa, which usually they would need,” Mr. Fluss said.

There were more than 300 OFWs applying for repatriation from Israel as of June 22, according to the Philippine Embassy in Israel. More than 30,000 Filipinos live in Israel, while there are more than 1,000 in Iran.