Israel · Work
Israel Foreign expert B/1
First stay: 2 yrs
B/1 work visa for a foreign expert at expert wages
Checked against official sources on , some details partly verifiedRecord corrected 12 Oct 2026Change log
Key facts
Foreign expert B/1 is a work route for Israel. Local work: limited. Checked 2026-10-12 against the official source.
- Government fees
- ILS 1,420 ≈ $460
- First stay
- 2 yrs
Cost, time and long term
Government feesILS 1,420 ≈ $460
- ILS 1,420 (≈ $460)Application fee for the permit to employ a foreign expert, paid by the employer at the end of the online application. The service page lists NIS 1,420 for all experts other than chefs and NIS 1,060 for expert chefs.
RenewalRenewable
The first permit is up to two years for professions requiring higher academic education, otherwise up to one year, and it can be renewed.
Where to applyFrom abroad
After the Population and Immigration Authority approves the employer's request, you attend a personal interview at an Israeli mission in the country where you live.
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Consulate General in Los Angeles
Why this route may not fit
Check this before you apply.
- Applications are made from outside Israel, not after arriving
- Needs a job offer from an employer in Israel
- Work rights are limited
What you'll need
Who can apply2
- An Israeli employer applies to the Employers and Foreign Workers Service Administration to employ the expert.
- The expert has a high level of expertise or essential and unique knowledge that is unavailable in Israel.
What you must show2
- Base monthly gross wage of at least twice the average wage of a salaried employee, as published each January by the National Insurance Institute.
- The application fee is NIS 1,420 for all experts other than chefs (NIS 1,060 for expert chefs), and the employer pays it.
Documents4
- Employer documents: company register extract, an accountant’s confirmation that the company is active and a letter explaining the need for the expert.
- The expert’s CV and diplomas showing education, experience, reputation or expertise, with notarised Hebrew translations if not in Hebrew or English.
- A local company attaches an accountant’s report that it is active with no going-concern warning, and a certified copy of form 102 filed with the National Insurance Institute for its Israeli workers in the last three months.
- A foreign company with no branch in Israel attaches a power of attorney for the person who files the request.
Steps3
- The employer applies online, attaches documents verified by a lawyer or an accountant, and pays the fee at the end of the application.
- The Commissioner decides at his discretion after recommendations from a professional committee and other bodies.
- After approval, the employer obtains the work visa for the expert from the Population and Immigration Authority; the Israeli mission then issues the B/1 visa.
After you arrive2
- A first permit is valid for at most two years for professions needing higher academic education and at most one year for others.
- Options and stock values do not count towards the required wage.
When you become tax resident
How Israel decides tax residence and treats foreign-source income, from its tax records.
- Stay on this route
Up to 2 years at first, renewable
- Tax residence
- At least 183 days in a tax yearPresumption that the centre of life is in Israel when the person stayed in Israel 183 days or more in the tax year (Income Tax Ordinance s. 1, definition of Israeli resident, para. (a)(2)(a)).
- At least 30 days in a tax yearPresumption of residence when the person stayed 30 days or more in the tax year and also the 425-day total over three years is met (para. (a)(2)(b)).
- At least 425 days in a tax year and the two preceding yearsTotal stay in Israel in the tax year and the two preceding years of 425 days or more, together with at least 30 days in the tax year, gives the residence presumption.
- Foreign-source income
Israeli residents are taxed on income accrued or derived in Israel or abroad, at progressive rates of 10%, 14%, 20%, 31%, 35% and 47% on employment income, with a 3% surtax on high income (and a further 2% on capital income) and a credit of two credit points for every resident; a person is presumed resident with 183 days in the tax year, or 30 days in the year and 425 days over the year and the two before it.
- Special regime
10-year exemption of foreign-source income · Tax relief
A person who becomes an Israeli resident for the first time, or a veteran returning resident, is exempt from tax for ten years on foreign-source income from the sources in sections 2, 2A and 3, unless they elect otherwise; a returning resident has a five-year exemption on certain passive foreign-source income.
All tax rules for Israel Tax records checked
Full official text
Permit for an Israeli employer to employ a foreign expert with high expertise or unique knowledge unavailable in Israel, paid at least twice the average wage of an employee. 1 2 3
What you must show and pay
- A fee of ILS 1,420 (≈ $460) · Application fee for the permit to employ a foreign expert, paid by the employer at the end of the online application. The service page lists NIS 1,420 for all experts other than chefs and NIS 1,060 for expert chefs. 3
Requirements
- An Israeli employer applies to the Employers and Foreign Workers Service Administration to employ the expert. 1
- The expert has a high level of expertise or essential and unique knowledge that is unavailable in Israel. 1
- Base monthly gross wage of at least twice the average wage of a salaried employee, as published each January by the National Insurance Institute. 1
- The application fee is NIS 1,420 for all experts other than chefs (NIS 1,060 for expert chefs), and the employer pays it. 3
- Employer documents: company register extract, an accountant’s confirmation that the company is active and a letter explaining the need for the expert. 1
- The expert’s CV and diplomas showing education, experience, reputation or expertise, with notarised Hebrew translations if not in Hebrew or English. 1 3
- A local company attaches an accountant’s report that it is active with no going-concern warning, and a certified copy of form 102 filed with the National Insurance Institute for its Israeli workers in the last three months. 3
- A foreign company with no branch in Israel attaches a power of attorney for the person who files the request. 3
- The employer applies online, attaches documents verified by a lawyer or an accountant, and pays the fee at the end of the application. 3
- The Commissioner decides at his discretion after recommendations from a professional committee and other bodies. 1
- After approval, the employer obtains the work visa for the expert from the Population and Immigration Authority; the Israeli mission then issues the B/1 visa. 1 2
- A first permit is valid for at most two years for professions needing higher academic education and at most one year for others. 1
- Options and stock values do not count towards the required wage. 1
Stay
- First permit up to two years for professions requiring higher academic education; up to one year otherwise.
- First stay: up to 24 months, decided case by case.
- Renewable, subject to the conditions in force at renewal.
Work
Work for the sponsoring employer in the approved role.
Official sources
- Application for a permit to employ a foreign national expert (form and guidelines) · Population and Immigration Authority, Israel · checked 2026-10-11
- Application for work visa in Israel · Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Consulate General in Los Angeles · checked 2026-10-12 · published 2026-06-15
- Apply for a permit to employ an expert foreign worker · Population and Immigration Authority, Israel · checked 2026-10-12 · published 2026-06-04
Foreign expert B/1 and its alternatives
| Route | Money needed | Stay | Work |
|---|---|---|---|
| Foreign expert B/1 | – | 2 yr, renewable | Limited |
| Work visa B/1 | – | – | – |
| Lecturer or researcher B/1 | – | 2 yr, renewable | – |
| Foreign company manager B/1 | – | 2 yr, renewable | Limited |
| LTR · Highly Skilled Thailand | Needs income of $80k+ a year | 5 yr, renewable | – |
Questions people ask
How much money do I need for the Foreign expert B/1?
A fee of ILS 1,420 (≈ $460). Application fee for the permit to employ a foreign expert, paid by the employer at the end of the online application.
How long can I stay on the Foreign expert B/1?
First permit up to two years for professions requiring higher academic education; up to one year otherwise.
Can I work on the Foreign expert B/1?
Limited. Work for the sponsoring employer in the approved role.
Is there a tax break for Foreign expert B/1 holders in Israel?
Israel: 10-year exemption of foreign-source income for new and veteran returning residents; 5-year relief for returning residents: A person who becomes an Israeli resident for the first time, or a veteran returning resident, is exempt from tax for ten years on foreign-source income from the sources in sections 2, 2A and 3, unless they elect otherwise; a returning resident has a five-year exemption on certain passive foreign-source income. It's separate from the visa and has its own conditions.
Tax
Special regime
Israel: 10-year exemption of foreign-source income for new and veteran returning residents; 5-year relief for returning residents
Tax relief
Details
- Who: Becoming an Israeli resident for the first time
A person who becomes an Israeli resident for the first time, or a veteran returning resident, is exempt from tax for ten years on foreign-source income from the sources in sections 2, 2A and 3, unless they elect otherwise; a returning resident has a five-year exemption on certain passive foreign-source income.
Taxed on
Income produced or accrued outside Israel, or from assets outside Israel, of an individual who became a resident for the first time or a veteran returning resident, for ten years from the date of becoming resident (section 14(a)). A returning resident (abroad six consecutive years or more) is exempt for five years on foreign pension, royalty, rent, interest and dividend income from assets acquired abroad after ceasing to be resident, and on interest and dividends from qualifying listed securities held in a bank account (section 14(c)); business income is excluded from the five-year relief.
Who it applies to
- Becoming an Israeli resident for the first time, or a veteran returning resident, meaning a person who became resident again after being a foreign resident for at least ten consecutive years (section 14(a)).
- Returning resident: became resident again after at least six consecutive years as a foreign resident (section 14(c)).
- The person may elect not to use the exemption for all or part of the income.
Exclusions
- Assets that reached the person exempt from tax under section 97(a)(5) from 1 January 2007 are not 'assets' for the exemption.
- The five-year returning-resident relief does not cover business income.
- The Minister of Finance, with Finance Committee approval, may extend the periods up to ten tax years for a significant investment made in Israel within two years.
Tax residence
The exemption runs from the date the person becomes a resident under the centre of life test. In a first adjustment year, a person who notifies the Tax Authority within 90 days of arrival is not treated as resident for that year, and the year counts toward the exemption period (section 14(b)).
Visas
Eligibility depends on tax residence history, not on the visa category; olim (new immigrants) also receive credit points over the first 54 months (section 35).
Other taxes
Israeli-source income of the same person is taxed on the ordinary resident scale.
Checked against official sources on , some details partly verifiedChange log
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≈ USD figures are approximate: daily reference rates from ExchangeRate-API, dated 12 Oct 2026, refreshed when the site is updated.
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How this was checked
Checked on 2026-10-12 against 3 official sources. Status: partly verified; the page marks the facts an official source does not fully confirm.
Every figure on this page comes from the official source it links to. The record was researched against these sources, then reviewed separately, with special attention to effective dates and amendments. Where a source does not state something, the page leaves it out.
- Application for a permit to employ a foreign national expert (form and guidelines) · Population and Immigration Authority, Israel · checked 2026-10-11
- Application for work visa in Israel · Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel, Consulate General in Los Angeles · checked 2026-10-12
- Apply for a permit to employ an expert foreign worker · Population and Immigration Authority, Israel · checked 2026-10-12
Tracked since 2026-10-10. Rule changes and corrections are listed on the changes page, and the methodology page explains how facts are checked. Found something out of date? Email contact@stayglobe.app with a link to the official source.