By Attorney Amit Acco, Partner
In accordance with the committee’s decision, an additional quota of 3,000 foreign workers has been approved for private recruitment in the industrial sector, provided that these workers enter Israel by December 31, 2024. An employer in the industrial sector with a valid permit will be able to recruit foreign workers from countries approved by the Population and Immigration Authority, after consultation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs if necessary, and in accordance with the following cumulative conditions:
1. The country does not have a bilateral agreement with Israel for recruiting foreign workers.
2. The country is ranked in either Tier 1 or Tier 2 in the annual U.S. Department of State report on human trafficking.
3. A manager’s affidavit confirming that no brokerage fees were collected from the foreign worker, whether abroad or in Israel, and that the worker will not bear any expenses for their arrival in Israel at any stage.
About the Report and Rankings:
In 2000, the U.S. Department of State decided that significant steps should be taken to combat human trafficking in all its forms. As part of the Victims of Trafficking Protection Act, guidelines and policies were established, aimed at a global commitment to fighting this evil, while calling on other nations to take similar steps. In this framework, the U.S. Secretary of State publishes an annual report ranking countries according to their policies and efforts to eradicate human trafficking.
The report describes each country’s efforts to eliminate severe forms of trafficking within its borders, examining the nature and scope of trafficking, and trends in efforts to combat it. After evaluation, each country is ranked in one of the following categories:
Tier 1:
Full compliance with minimum standards for the elimination of severe forms of human trafficking. Some of the countries ranked in this tier include: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, the United Kingdom, and the United States of America.
It is important to note that Tier 1 ranking does not indicate the absence of human trafficking in these countries, but rather that they meet the standards set by the U.S. Department of State, to which Israel is also committed.
Tier 2
Not fully : compliant, but the country is making “significant efforts” to meet the minimum standards. Countries ranked in this tier include: Andorra, Argentina, Bahamas, Belarus, Bolivia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Brunei, Bulgaria, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Estonia, Fiji, Greece, Guyana, Hong Kong, Hungary, Iceland, Indonesia, Israel, Japan, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macau, Malaysia, Malta, Mexico, Montenegro, Morocco, Nepal, Oman, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, South Korea, Romania, Russian Federation, Saudi Arabia, Serbia, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Africa, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates, Uruguay, Vanuatu.
The 10 possible countries:
Despite the fact that the list of included countries in tier 1 and tier 2 is extensive, the Ministry of Interior has approved the recruitment of workers from the following 10 countries: Sri Lanka, Azerbaijan, Moldova, India, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Latvia, the Philippines, Romania, and Thailand. However, an exception request can be submitted to bring foreign workers from countries included in the extended list (beyond these ten countries), but this will be determined at the discretion of the Ministry of Interior at the time of the request and based on its circumstances.
Employer’s Responsibility:
It should be emphasized that the manager of the company bears personal criminal liability to ensure, through the employee and other means, that no brokerage fees are collected from the foreign worker, either abroad or in Israel, and that the worker is not charged any expenses for their arrival in Israel at any stage. In addition to being a criminal offense, this could result in severe penalties, reaching the level of suspicion of human trafficking.
Therefore, we recommend that companies recruit their workers through international companies like Joblio, which specialize in ethical recruitment and ensure full compliance with anti-human trafficking laws.
The law firm of Kan-Tor & Acco provides services to industrial companies and employment agencies, assisting with obtaining recommendations from the Ministry of Industry and Trade and work visas for experts and skilled workers, all while ensuring full compliance with the law and regulations.
