In recent years, Israel has become a desired destination for technology companies, venture capital firms, and the global high-tech/innovation community in its entirety.  Similarly, some international Energy, Infrastructure, and Projects sectors have increased their presence in Israel's economy.  Amongst various comprehensive projects carried out in Israel are the light rail in Gush Dan, the light rail in Jerusalem, and the establishment of power stations and desalination facilities. 

These occurrences, alongside the arrival of additional international corporations such as Amazon, Google and others to the local market, necessitate the employment of foreign national experts who have a unique work experience, distinct specialties, and a knowledge which is essential and critical to the successful initiation and implementation of these projects as well as to the expansion of this international presence in Israel's economy.

Essentially, most of the 'foreign national experts' hold exceptional knowledge and talents that do not exist in the target country of employment, and without which it would not be possible to conduct the necessary work.  Pursuant to this, a foreign national expert is defined as a foreign worker who is granted a preferred employment status, compared to that of most foreign workers. 

The foreign national expert may be employed by either a local company or a foreign firm requesting the expert's arrival.  In these instances, the foreign company sponsors the request and submits it to the relevant entities.  The employment procedure of foreign national workers, and specifically that of foreign national experts, is managed by a series of rules and regulations, i.e., the Entry into Israel Law, Entry Regulations, and the Foreign Workers Law.  One should also consider the procedures of the Israeli Ministry of Interior, and various government decisions and rulings, as well as policies that tend to shift from time to time.    

The employment of a foreign expert in Israel requires the issuance of a work permit as well as a corresponding work visa.  The procedure is considered a relatively-lengthy bureaucratic process which involves several steps and may extend for over three-months' period.   Accordingly, it is recommended to pre-plan these procedures as soon as possible.

The Work Permit & Work Visa include the following steps:

Submitting a work permit application to the Permits Unit at the Population and Immigration Authorities.

Submitting a work visa and a Multiple Entrance-to-Israel visa at the relevant Ministry of Interior and sending the confirmation cable to the relevant Israeli consulate abroad.

Obtaining the work visa at the Israeli consulate abroad.

Extending the work visa for the requested time period at the airport, when the foreign expert enters Israel, and submitting the request for a multiple-entry visa to the relevant Ministry of Interior.

These procedures refer to a regulated, standard process; however, its phases may become shorter or longer based on certain policies.  A request for additional documents, reports or certain information by the authorities is possible at any given time. Furthermore, the majority of these procedures necessitate a payment.   

Compliance with all of the above-mentioned steps will enable the lawful employment of the foreign national expert in Israel.  Employing a foreign national who does not hold the designated visa is considered a criminal offense and results in severe penalties (over NIS 5000.00 per each workday), an arrest, and a deportation which may negatively impact the expert's future employment worldwide.  Additionally, the sponsoring company will face criminal charges, likely to be reported to the stock market or to the company's board of directors.     

Extending a foreign national expert's employment by an additional year is possible; however, the process in question is both complex and challenging.  In these instances, the sponsoring company is requested to justify the expert's continued employment in Israel and provide explanation as to why the entirety of his/her knowledge was not passed on to the Israeli team.  

Obtaining the legal support of a law firm which specializes in immigration, employees' relocation, and the employment of foreign national experts will assist the sponsoring company to obtain all relevant visas and permits professionally and in due time.

It will also lay the groundwork for further similar procedures with other employees, and prevent possible complications and delays. 

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.