As reported last week in Israel today, foreign tourists are expected to return to Israel as early as next month, unless we see a worrying increase in morbidity.
Yesterday we published in Israel today about the difficulties faced by the government ministries involved, including forgery of certificates, the validity of vaccines and vaccines that are not approved by the World Health Organization.
Further details are now being revealed about the apparent outline, according to which in the first phase, only citizens of the countries with which Israel has a vaccine recognition agreement will be able to enter Israel for tourism purposes and without the need for isolation or serological tests.
Prior to the outline, only vaccinated people who received the second dose in the last six months or those who received the third dose at least a week before arriving in Israel will be able to arrive and travel around the country.
As we published yesterday, few meet the definition of vaccinated in Israel, which will very significantly limit the amount of tourists we see here during the coming period.
Minister of Tourism Yoel Rezbozov, Photo: Photo: Michael Giladi - Ginny
In talks with senior officials in the Ministry of Tourism, they make it clear that the next stage is expected to arrive towards the end of November, during which citizens of all countries of the world will be able to enter Israel if they are vaccinated according to the Israeli definition.
Those who are expected to be included in the outline even before it opens to citizens of all countries of the world are citizens of the United States with whom discussions are currently underway.
At the same time, the Russian vaccine "Sputnik", which is not currently recognized by the World Health Organization, is a barrier for tourists from Russia who have been vaccinated and want to visit the country.
However, according to estimates, the World Health Organization is expected to recognize the vaccine in the coming weeks, which should resolve the issue and allow vaccinated people from all over the world to come to the country.
The government ministries involved tend to divide the tourists into those who come from countries with which there is an agreement and those with whom there is no recognition agreement for the vaccinator certificate, in case there are countries with which there is no recognition agreement, consider sending documents confirming the vaccine online
If this move is approved, it will be necessary to assign quite a few employees so that they will only deal with this matter.
Israeli airlines will benefit from the move, Photo: Photo: Coco
It is currently unclear how children will be able to enter Israel and it is likely that the outline will allow unvaccinated children to enter the country.
Those who will most likely benefit from the relief are the tourists who will arrive in groups, and the possibility of approving the vaccinated in two doses that have already passed six months from the second dose to enter the country as part of a group is being examined.
If approved, those tourists will need to perform a quick check on a daily standard.
According to the information we have, there are up to 1,000 tourists a day who will be allowed to enter the country in this category and they too, as mentioned, only as part of a group.
Such a decision can lead to anger on the part of Israelis who have been vaccinated with two doses before more than half who have not been vaccinated in a third dose and are committed to full isolation upon arrival in Israel.
All tourists who enter Israel are also expected to receive a green badge, whether through a daily check for those who do not meet the Israeli definition or whether they are vaccinated by definition and they will be able to enter restaurants, hotels and other activities that require the green badge.