Visas to Israel subject to recommendation amid Gaza war: SLFBE

Following the most recent developments with the escalation of the war in the Gaza Strip, the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) noted that it will have to obtain an assessment process by three establishments when granting visas for Sri Lankans who intend to seek employment in Israel.

“Potential employees seeking employment in Israel should have to obtain clearance from the Foreign Affairs Ministry, the Sri Lankan Embassy in Israel and from Israel’s Population and Immigration Authority (PIBA), which is the organisation in Israel responsible for foreign employment contracts. We need to obtain recommendations and clearance from these three entities to move forward with any visa process,” SLBFE Spokesman Gamini Senerath Yapa said.

He said that the local authorities are debating whether to provide permission without the recommendations of the three authorised establishments after learning that it had received over 100 visa applications and received 15 approved visa files in return.