Granting visas/residence permit in Israel for specials humanitarian reasons – humanitarian visa israel

HumanitarianVisa Israel – Background:

In Israel, there is a committee called “the Inter-Ministerial Committee for Humanitarian Affairs”, which has the authority to discuss cases where the applicant does not meet the criteria set in the Entry into Israel Law, 1952, but due to special humanitarian reasons it is appropriate to approve his stay. This committee advises the General Director of the Population, immigration and Borders Authority, when evaluating requests for status in Israel.

As mentioned above, it is possible to apply for residence permits for special humanitarian reasons. There are many reasons as such, and these reasons are not a closed list. Here we will discuss some common cases, but it is important to note that beyond them there are many cases each of will be discussed individually.

Regulating the status of a foreign national spouse as a result of the violence of the Israeli spouse is a case included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons, in cases where the couple’s relationship was terminated as a result of violence of the Israeli spouse, and the graduated procedure was terminated by divorce or separation of the couple. Application for Status will be forwarded to an inter-ministerial Committee for granting a status on humanitarian grounds, subject to compliance with the conditions. See our article: “regulating the status of a foreign national spouse as a result of the violence of the Israeli spouse”.

Regulating the status of a foreign national spouse after divorcing an Israeli spouse is another case that is included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons, cases where the couple’s relationship was terminated and the graduated procedure was stopped after a divorce, and the couple has children together. Application for status for the foreign spouse will be forwarded to the Inter-ministerial Committee for granting a status on humanitarian grounds, subject to compliance with the conditions. See our article: “Regulating the status of a foreign national spouse after divorcing Israeli spouse”.

Regulating the status of a foreign national spouse after the death of the Israeli spouse is another case that is included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons, cases in which the couple’s relationship was terminated and the graduated procedure was stopped after the death of the Israeli spouse. Application for status for the foreign national spouse will be forwarded to the inter-ministerial committee for granting a status on humanitarian grounds subject to compliance with the conditions. In cases where the graduated procedure is stopped and the conditions as specified are not complete, and there are other special humanitarian reasons (for example: spouse died filling his military duty) the application will be reviewed on its merits as an exception. See our article about “regulating the status of a foreign national spouse after the death of the Israeli spouse”.

Asylum seekers in Israel and the ones declared as eligible for asylum, is another case that is included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons. asylum seekers often come from countries in which there is peace, but the state is unable to protect them, for example a citizen who cooperated with the authorities in his country of citizenship and implicated criminals, is entitled to be called a refugee. Another example is Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel, that clearly have their life in danger if they return to their homeland – the region of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip, whether by terrorist organizations or by the Palestinian Authority. See our article “asylum seekers in Israel who declared as eligible for asylum”.

Residency permit in Israel for victims of terrorist acts is another case included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons. Foreigners injured in terror attacks and recognized by the social security as ones, are entitled to a residence permit in Israel, subject to compliance with the conditions. See our article: “permit to stay in Israel for Victims of terror attacks”.

Consulting and handling applications to the committee of threatened, is another case included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons. Palestinians suspected of collaborating with Israel, who for one reason or another do not received help from the Israeli authorities, can try and escape the sword of deportation placed on their necks, by turning to “Commission of threatened”. This committee, which belongs formally to the Coordination authority Office of the Army, established to treat the Palestinians who were not recognized as “helpers” and which can be victims to persecution and life danger if will be deported. See our article “consultation and handling applications to committee of threatened”.

The procedure for an elderly parent is another case that is included in the list of cases entitled to a residence permit for special humanitarian reasons. The procedure for an elderly parent allows an Israeli citizen that his parent is not Jewish and is not eligible for citizenship under the Law of Return, to apply for a residence and work permit in Israel for the parent when the parent is elderly and alone. “An old and alone” parent is a parent over the age of 60 who has no other children living abroad and does not have a spouse abroad. See our article: “Procedure for an elderly parent”.

 

humanitarian visa in israel – History:

In Israel, there is the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law, 2003, which states that a permanent residency status will not be granted to Palestinians married to Israeli Arabs. The Law was passed in 2003 following the terror attack in Matza restaurant in Haifa in March 2002, in which 15 Israelis have been killed. It turned out that the terrorist who carried out the attack was carrying a blue identity card (ID) because of his mother, who married an Israeli Arab from the Galil region. From the moment it passed, this law regulated exceptional which allowed the granting of a residence permit in Israel to residents of the region, subject to the special humanitarian reasons”.

 

According to the Citizenship and Entry into Israel Law (Temporary Order), 2003:

2. During the validity period of this law, despite the mentioned in any law, including Section 7 of the Citizenship Law, the Interior Minister shall not grant a resident of an region (residents of Judea, Samaria and the Gaza Strip) or a citizen or resident of a country listed in the addition (citizens of Iran, Lebanon, Syria, Iraq), a citizenship under the Citizenship law, and will not grant him a residence permit in Israel according to to the Entry into Israel Law, and the regional commander shall not grant a resident of an region (as mentioned) a residence permit in Israel according to the security legislation in the region.

The arrangement provided in this section does not allow granting a citizenship or a residence permit in Israel to the region residents and residents of “risk countries” as long as the Temporary Order Law is still valid. This arrangement was passed after the outbreak of the second “Intifada” and assessments of security officials that the entry of the region’s residents into Israel and their free movement within its borders is a security risk.

Right from the moment it was established, this law has regulated exceptions which allowed the granting of a residence permit in Israel to residents of the region. This exceptions are added with a further amendment in 2007, section 3a1 to the Temporary Order Law which allows the interior minister to grant, for special humanitarian reasons and at the recommendation of a professional committee appointed for this matter, a temporary residency permit to stay in Israel or a residence permit in Israel to a resident of the region whose family is staying legally in Israel, as one of the exceptions to the arrangement established in section 2 of this law. Section

 

3a1 to the Temporary Order law:

“(A) despite of the provisions of section 2, the Interior Minister is allowed, on special humanitarian grounds, on the recommendation of a professional committee appointed for this matter (in this section – the committee);

(1) to grant a permit for temporary residence in Israel to a resident of the region or to a citizen or resident of a country listed in the addition, whose family is staying legally in Israel;

(2) to approve the application for granting a temporary residence permit in Israel by the regional commander, to a resident whose family is staying legally in Israel. Under special humanitarian circumstances and subject to the recommendation of the Special Committee, the interior minister is authorized to grant a resident of the region with a temporary residency permit in Israel, or approve the application for granting a temporary residence permit by the regional commander.

On the ruling in Adalah case, President of the supreme court, Barak, stated that in circumstances where there is no alternative measure for sweeping restriction of rights, the proportionality tests – and especially the need to choose the means whose harm to family life is the lower – may require the acceptance of a tool that will allow humanitarian exceptions to the sweeping agreement prohibiting the granting of status in Israel to residents of the region. The reasons for this position are also specified in the ruling of President of the supreme court, Barak, on the same case:

“The reason is that even when there is no alternative, in order to achieve the proper purpose sweeping restriction of rights, there may be circumstances where on the one hand, the violation of the right is extremely harsh, and on the other hand, an exception defending on the right will not hurt the achievement of the proper goal. Creating an exceptions system is designed to respond circumstances of this kind. The exceptions system can reduce the impact of law in rights, without hurting the achievement of the proper goal.

Thus, the creation of such a system is required for the second subtest concerning choosing the least harmful measure. Indeed, as the obligation of every administrative authority owner to use his discretion from case to case, and to recognize exceptions to the rules and guidelines when the circumstances justify it … it is also the legislator’s obligation, when he establishes an order in which the outcome is sweeping violations of rights, to consider the determination of exceptions that would provide a solution for special situations in circumstances which justifies it”.
Court’s ruling states that an applicant for residence permit under the Entry into Israel law has no automatic right to receive it, and “The Authority to grant such permits and the discretion to use it, are dedicated to the interior minister … [his] broad discretion in the matter”.

The situation today of humanitarian visa:

Regarding applications made under the exception of “special humanitarian reasons”, the Interior Ministry issued a special procedure. As part of this procedure a residency permit in Israel may be approved for humanitarian reasons. Here is the procedure:

The inter-ministerial committee for humanitarian affairs is an advisory committee to the CEO of the Population, Immigration and Borders authority when evaluating applications for status in Israel, under the Law of Entry to Israel 1952, which do not meet the criteria set in the various regulations.

As part of the procedure the applicant should submit his application in a special form together with the relevant documents. His application will be discussed at “the inter-ministerial committee for humanitarian affairs”. In case the application is denied, the applicant can file a petition.

 

For example, in the Quintero case, a person who is involved in the incrimination of a criminal, who was in danger to be attacked by the same person, his State of citizenship did not offer him adequate and effective protection. This is a case of “special humanitarian reasons”, and by the words of the Court:

When a person is being attacked so brutally by a criminal source because of his family’s involvement in the incrimination of the source, and when the state does not offer effective protection – the attacked should not be required to “take a chance” and expect that if he moves to another town “Everything will be alright”. After all, this is the same country and the arms of crime can get him more easily inside the country, than abroad.
Common problems:

The interior minister’s discretion is especially broad where it is about a visa or a permit for exceptional humanitarian reasons. Added to this is the fact that section 3a1 to the Temporary Order law does not contain criteria defining what are the characteristics of the “special humanitarian consideration” which would justify the consent of the Interior Minister to the application submitted (regarding the absence of guiding criteria to the discretion of the Interior Minister in resolutions under the Entry into Israel Law and its regulations).

So the Interior Minister has a broad discretion on the subject of the entry of foreigners to Israel and settling there. This derives from the accepted principle in modern democratic countries, whereby the state has a broad discretion in the issue of entry of foreigners into its territory, and the foreigner does not have the right to enter a country where he has no status, whether as a tourist or as a resident. With this having stated, it should be remembered that this discretion is subjected to the court’s review, as any other authority’s discretion, as part of the “standard” reviewing grounds applying to all administrative discretionary.

The interior minister should therefore, use his discretion in good faith, based on relevant considerations, equality, proportionality and reasonableness. Due to the broad discretion granted to the Interior Minister when deciding whether a case meets the definition of “Special humanitarian grounds”, most of the applications submitted are being rejected. Usually “the inter-ministerial committee for humanitarian affairs”, which is competent to consider applications as such, claims that the criteria for “special humanitarian reasons” are not met, and the common person has no ability to attack the decisions of the authorities and therefore it is extremely important to have a legal advice through an attorney.

For example, David Angel’s law firm has handled applications of people who are threatened in their country of citizenship if they return there, if for the reason of fear from being attacked by criminals that the applicant has framed in his country of citizenship, or for the reason of concern from being attacked by terrorists after they were suspected of collaboration with Israel.
Attorney David Angel firm expertise:

As mentioned above, most of the “special applications on humanitarian grounds” cases complicated and therefore many are the problems that may occur when “the inter-ministerial committee for humanitarian affairs” is not helping the matter to say the least. David Angel Law Firm has extensive experience in dealings with “the inter-ministerial committee for humanitarian affairs” and with all courts, including the Supreme Court.

David Angel Law firm knows how to deal and handle with the various problems arises while regulating the status of refugees. David Angel Law firm has great successes in the field. David Angel Law firm managed hundreds of cases of Palestinians or foreigners who are being persecuted in their home country due to collaboration with Israel, both in the threats Committee and the courts. David Angel Law firm deals with claims against the Immigration and population Ministry for more than a decade and operates on behalf of its clients to get them the same rights granted to them under the law.

David Angel law firm provides support and representation against the Interior Ministry in providing visa for a foreign national spouse which is a foreign citizen married to an Israeli citizen * briefing and guidance before discussions at the Interior Ministry * briefing before polling Interior Ministry briefing document preparation * * Preparation of documents * representation *.