According to a conservative estimate, at least half a million Israelis or former Israelis live abroad (at the end of the day, even a citizen who left the country and did not live there for 30 or 40 years still holds Israeli citizenship, assuming he did not actively renounce it); Less conservative estimates speak of close to 800,000 Israelis overseas.
Some of those Israelis are what are called in popular parlance 'immigrants', meaning Israelis who have chosen to immigrate and move the center of their lives to another country, another part is staying abroad temporarily for the purpose of studies, missions on behalf of the workplace or business. Here is a guide intended for Israelis returning for a homeland holiday (or their families here) - how to purchase health insurance for a returning resident (foreign)?
Looking for health insurance for a returning or foreign resident? Or insurance for tourists? Compare prices and buy online >>
Between citizenship and residency
From the moment a person received Israeli citizenship, even if he was born to parents who are Israeli citizens; and whether he received his citizenship by virtue of the Law of Return or another naturalization procedure; He remains an Israeli citizen for his entire life (except for very unusual circumstances).
But life in Israel also has another dimension that affects personal conduct - 'residency'. An Israeli citizen whose center of life is in Israel is also not covered under the status of 'resident' which gives him rights and obligations.
For our purposes, what is relevant are mainly the social rights granted by the National Insurance to the residents as well as the medical insurance in the HMO. Basically, a person stops being a 'resident' of Israel automatically after 5 years in which he stayed (most of the time) abroad.
In addition, many Israelis who leave the country for a period of several years will proactively give up their residency to avoid accumulating debt in the National Insurance. Why is it important to recognize the distinction between 'citizen' and 'resident'? Because when an Israeli citizen who is no longer a 'resident of Israel' visits the country (foreign resident) he is in a unique position that distinguishes him from someone who is a resident and this is especially important in the insurance context.
Insurance vacuum
Most of the Israelis who live abroad visit the country from time to time, some of them are not necessarily aware of this, but from an insurance point of view they are in a very different status than citizens who are also residents.
Unlike the residents of Israel who at any given moment are surrounded by an insurance cover of the National Insurance and the Health Insurance Fund, the status of returning residents who have not arranged full residency is very different.
In the event of an injury, injury or illness that attacks them during their stay in the country, they are essentially in an insurance vacuum and if, God forbid, they get injured, they will not receive assistance (and subsequently an allowance) from the National Insurance and there will be no body that will pay the expenses of hospitalization or the medical procedure.
In fact, from this point of view, the status of Israelis living abroad and visiting their homeland is no different from the status of tourists visiting it. But while tourists are aware of the fact that when they leave the borders of their country they must have insurance coverage that will protect and defend them in case of need, Israelis living abroad sometimes forget this point and believe that the mere fact that they have an Israeli passport guarantees them in any case. That's really not the case.
The solution - returning resident insurance
The solution to this problem is simple: Israelis living abroad and coming to visit their homeland should treat a visit to Israel like any other trip in the world. In other words - get health insurance like any other tourist.
In fact, most insurance companies do not even offer a unique policy to residents returning to visit their homeland, but instead market them a tourist health policy . If you are Israelis living abroad who plan to visit your homeland or relatives of such Israelis, you should be aware of this matter. Which leads us to the next topic: choosing the most suitable and affordable policy.
It turns out that in the field of health policies for tourists (which, as mentioned, are also the insurance solution for returning residents), there are differences between the offers of the different companies. Not all policies offer the same coverage and not all are equally affordable.
The good news is that through the national collective you can find the most appropriate and affordable policy. The national collective is an agency that specializes in specific insurance niches (and this includes insurance for tourists and insurance for returning residents/non-residents).
This specialization together with the fact that the national collective is not obligated to any insurance company, but only to the end customer, allows the company to tailor an insurance package for a foreign resident that will be affordable and economical and will match, exactly, your medical condition, thus providing you with a lot of peace of mind during your visit to the homeland.
Looking for health insurance for a returning or foreign resident? Or insurance for tourists? Compare prices and buy online >>
You can also contact us for a customized policy.
