Unvaccinated tourists will be allowed to enter Israel starting March 1

After the Israeli Health Ministry advised relaxing COVID-19 curbs as the fifth wave of coronavirus infections fueled by the Omicron strain continues to recede, the country’s government announced new guidelines on travel and education, set to come into effect on March 1.

Under the new rules, both vaccinated and unvaccinated tourists of all ages will be allowed into Israel, as long as they submit a negative PCR test before boarding the flight and pass another one after landing in the country.

The citizens of Israel returning home will not be required to take a pre-flight test, but only a PCR upon landing.

Also, unvaccinated Israeli citizens will not have to quarantine after their return to Israel as long as they test negative upon arrival.

Israel’s complete closing of its borders to non-citizens at the time was harshly criticized by Jewish leaders around the world, who argued that as the nation-state of the Jewish people and the home to roughly half the world’s Jewish population, the country had a responsibility to keep itself open to Jewish visitors.

“We are seeing a steady decline in the morbidity data; therefore, this is the time to gradually open what we were the first in the world to close,” Israel’s Prime Minister Naftali Bennett said after a meeting with Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz and Tourism Minister Yoel Razvozov.

“Our indicators must be in sync with the situation on the ground. What we are telling the public must be in sync with what is expected of it,” he said. “In order to maintain the public’s trust and be certain that the citizens of Israel are implementing the directives and the government’s decision, we must open up as the situation improves – and it is improving significantly.”

“At the moment, the situation in Israel is good… At the same time, we will continue to closely monitor the situation and in the event of a new variant, we will again act quickly,” Bennett added.

Israeli Health Ministry had originally recommended only allowing unvaccinated tourists under the age of 12 to enter the country, and only if they are accompanied by vaccinated parents.

However, Tourism Minister Razvozov strongly opposed the proposal, demanding that all unvaccinated children under the age of 18 be allowed in, citing tourism-related considerations.

Israeli Minister of Diaspora Affairs Nachman Shai hailed the government’s decision, saying it was a boon to the people around the world who have struggled to visit the country during the COVID-19 pandemic.