Question 1

Can a foreign caregiver start working before an employment permit is issued?

Accepted Answer

No. A foreign caregiver may be employed only after the Population and Immigration Authority has issued an employment permit to the patient, and only for the work set out in the permit and the employment contract. It is therefore advisable to apply for the permit as early as possible.

Do not employ a worker, not even for trial days, before they are lawfully registered with you. Private employment without a permit is illegal, even when the patient is not entitled to the care benefit because of income; in that case a permit is requested through the dependency-assessment track.

Question 2

Who is eligible for a permit to employ a foreign caregiver?

Accepted Answer

Eligibility depends on the patient's degree of dependence on others and on age, through several tracks including the National Insurance long-term care benefit, the special-services allowance and a dependency assessment.

Under the Authority's procedure (9.2.0002), subject to its general conditions:
• From retirement age: 4.5 points in the dependency (ADL) test, or 4 points plus a single score, or entitlement to partial supervision plus a single score, or a care benefit at level 4, 5 or 6. From age 90, 4 points suffice.
• A patient over retirement age who is not entitled to the care benefit because of income undergoes a dependency assessment under procedure 9.2.0005.
• From 18 to retirement age: a special-services allowance of at least 112%. At a lower rate, or with a mobility allowance, the application goes to a committee.
• Under 18, special conditions apply, including a disabled-child allowance of at least 100%.

Lower benefit levels do not qualify automatically; in borderline cases the assessment findings and the need for care most of the day are examined. Check the right track with the agency before applying.

Question 3

Can a foreign caregiver be employed part-time or only a few days a week?

Accepted Answer

No. A permit to employ a foreign caregiver is given only to a patient who needs care or supervision for most hours of the day throughout a full working week, and the permit holder undertakes to employ the worker at least full-time. Part-time employment, or employment for only some hours or days a week, is not allowed. A patient who needs help for a few hours a day or a few days a week can be assisted by an Israeli worker.

Question 4

Can a permit application be submitted online, and how do I get a copy of the permit?

Accepted Answer

An application for a new permit, a permit extension or an additional worker is filed on the Population and Immigration Authority's current online form, directly or through a private agency. The fee is paid and the required documents attached, including the employer's undertaking and a confidentiality waiver.

Good to know:
• Besides your home address, an email address is mandatory. The Authority's decisions and requests are sent there, or to the agency's address if the application was filed through it.
• An extension is requested 60 days before the permit expires.
• If a document is missing, the Authority asks for it within 14 days; if it is not supplied, the application is rejected. Once all documents are in, the application is handled within 14 days at most.
• On the Authority's website you can track the application and download the permit to a computer or phone, so even if the original has not reached you, you can produce it yourself.

Always use the current forms as published on the Authority's website.

Question 5

Who may sign the permit application when the patient cannot sign?

Accepted Answer

As a rule, the patient signs the application and the undertakings. When the patient cannot fulfil the employer's duties, a first-degree relative, such as a spouse, child or parent, or the guardian signs instead. The signatory is considered the worker's employer and bears the employer's duties.

Supporting documents:
• If the patient has been declared legally incompetent, the guardian files the application and attaches the guardianship certificate.
• If the signatory is not the patient, a copy of the signatory's ID is attached. For an invitation from abroad, attach a copy of the ID of the permit holder or of the signing relative, guardian or attorney.
• The medical confidentiality waiver is signed by the patient or a lawfully appointed guardian.

If the patient cannot sign and no guardian has been appointed, contact us before filing and we will work out the right course together. The agency will guide you on what to fill in on each form.

Question 6

What employment options does a nursing-benefit recipient who employs a foreign caregiver have?

Accepted Answer

A patient entitled to a nursing benefit who employs a foreign caregiver can choose between two routes: receive the benefit in cash and employ the worker directly, or employ the worker in parallel with a nursing company. In parallel employment the nursing company employs the worker and pays its share according to the benefit hours set for the patient, and the patient pays for the rest of the full-time position. Each employer bears its obligations to the worker in proportion to its share, covering wages, National Insurance, pension-substitute payments and severance, and every payment goes to the worker's bank account. Before choosing, it is worth considering with us what suits you best.

Question 7

Can a permit be obtained to employ a foreign caregiver for a child or babies?

Accepted Answer

A nursing-care permit is granted to care for a patient in need of nursing care, not for healthy children or babies. A permit for babies is therefore not available, including for twins, surrogacy, single-parent or large families.

For a minor with a disability, a permit is granted only if National Insurance recognised a disabled-child allowance of at least 100%, and the professional committee is shown at least one of the following:
• attending an educational or therapeutic setting depends on a carer giving physical help;
• the child needs constant accompaniment or supervision most of the day and cannot attend a setting;
• special medical circumstances require daily, close and prolonged care at home, for example at night.

Contact us for an initial eligibility check.

Question 8

Which permit requests go to the professional committee, and what is attached?

Accepted Answer

Alongside the standard route, which is based on National Insurance eligibility, the Authority's procedure lists cases that go to an advisory professional committee. Among them: a patient aged 85 or over, with up-to-date medical documents and a medical-functional report signed by a nurse; a patient with a malignant oncological illness who needs help most hours of the day, with recent documents from an oncologist, where the permit is generally given for up to one year; an additional foreign worker, approved only in especially complex cases requiring continuous 24-hour care, generally for one year. A patient over retirement age who is not eligible for the care benefit because of income must undergo a dependency assessment under a separate procedure. The committee may ask for more documents and even make a home visit.

Question 9

Can two patients living together employ one foreign caregiver under a joint permit?

Accepted Answer

No. The Population and Immigration Authority does not issue joint permits for caring for several patients, even when they live in the same home, because each patient needs care for most hours of the day and the burden on the worker would be unreasonable. Each eligible patient needs a permit and a worker of their own. However, incidental tasks the worker naturally performs for a family member living with the permit holder are not a breach, as long as they do not create a care overload.

Question 10

What happens to the caregiver when the patient dies and the spouse who lived with them needs care?

Accepted Answer

The spouse may employ the worker only if they themselves meet the permit conditions and receive a permit in their own name, so a permit application must be filed for them. Under Authority policy, if the spouse lived with the deceased patient under the same roof, they may continue employing the worker who cared for their partner even after 63 months, provided they meet the permit conditions. Please contact the agency soon after the death to start the process.