Digital Visa Extension Round – March 2026 [UPDATED]

AIC is doing everything in its power to pressure PIBA to resume visa services ASAP. Click here to read more about our activity and efforts.

If you urgently require visa services (for example to purchase an intervisa in order to leave Israel, to renew your ID for work or licensing reasons, to register a newborn, etc.), please reach out to your office via email. If there is no response, we suggest trying to reach out to other offices that are open for emergency services.

Bituach Leumi is synchronized with PIBA’s system regarding the updated validity of your visa. If you qualify for the visa extension, there is no need to contact Bituach Leumi or take any further action.

The Ministry of Transportation is also synchronized with PIBA’s system; however, the driving license itself, which is a physical card, is not automatically extended. If your license has expired, treat this situation like any other visa extension and request a new driving license accordingly.

Unlike the visa, the Israeli ID itself, which is a physical card, is not digitally extended. While a valid Israeli ID card is required for certain governmental and financial services, it is generally not needed for most day-to-day activities in Israel. If you have a legitimate urgent need for an Israeli ID, please see our answer below.

According to PIBA, all visa appointments are cancelled as long as PIBA offices remain closed or as long as they operate for emergency services only.

However, the digital visa extension does not necessarily mean your meeting is cancelled.

If your office reopens for visa services by the date of your meeting, your meeting should still be happening normally despite the extension. However, if the office remains closed for visa services due to the war, your meeting will not take place.

Stay updated by checking announcements from the Home Front Command regarding daily security measures. Also, follow AIC’s Instagram / Facebook story for the latest information about office operations and available services.

If your meeting was cancelled, please email the relevant office to reschedule.

Visa services have been completely inoperative since March 1st. If your meeting was cancelled during the shutdown, please email the relevant office to reschedule, or visit the office in person once it reopens for visa services. Additionally, follow renewal procedures as usual by submitting a renewal request 3 months before your visa expiry.

Regarding citizenship ceremonies specifically, we have received confirmation from an internal source that some PIBA offices are continuing to hold citizenship ceremonies as usual, as these are not considered a visa service. If your scheduled ceremony was cancelled, you should contact your local office to reschedule, and it is expected that you will be accommodated.

Unfortunately, the visa extensions only apply to people who were physically in Israel when they were rolled out.

If your visa and intervisa are still valid, you are able to re-enter Israel normally. AIC is advocating that PIBA rolls out the digital extension again, so it will also apply to visa holders who were abroad and have since returned to Israel, please keep following our updates on this matter.

We strongly recommend catching a rescue flight from a nearby country or entering via a land border before your visa expires.

*This information is based on PIBA’s official FAQ from June 2025. AIC requested for the information to be updated asap. Until then, please treat it as general indicative guidance only.

Citizens of visa-exempt countries: Must hold an ETA-IL approval in order to travel back to Israel, upon entry they will receive a tourist visa.
Citizens of non visa exempt countries: Must apply for a visa/entry clearance through the Israeli consulate in their current location. Alternatively, an Israeli partner can submit an invitation request at their local Population Authority office in Israel. If approved, the foreign partner can visit the Israeli consulate to receive a visa in their passport.

Foreign nationals who were in the gradual process before leaving Israel and later reentered as tourists according to the policy above, upon return to Israel must schedule an appointment at their local PIBA office once visa services reopen in order to return to their original status.

Text messages (SMS) about the visa extension were sent on March 2nd and March 19th, to qualifying visa holders who PIBA has their phone number registered. Even if you didn’t receive a text message, your visa extension still applies as long as you meet all the conditions listed above.

Yes! Unlike previous digital extension rounds, PIBA has listened to our advocacy and extended valid intervisas alongside the main visas. If you had a valid multiple-entry visa and meet the above conditions, it has also been extended by three months.

In digital extensions, a valid visa sticker or ID is not required for the status’s validity. The extended validity is updated in all government systems, which is what counts.

If your employer or any other external entity asks for proof, you may show them the text message you received or PIBA’s official announcements on their website: First visa extension, Second visa extension

Once PIBA offices return to normal operations, you should be able to obtain up-to-date visa stickers (for free), renew your ID, etc. – either by walk-in or by scheduling a new appointment.

If you need a valid ID urgently for a legitimate reason, we suggest trying to ask for a temporary ID (paper ID) at one of the offices that are open for emergency services. Follow AIC’s Instagram / Facebook story for the latest information about office operations and available services.

Note: In digital extensions, a valid visa sticker or ID is not required to maintain lawful status.

The current digital extension only covers visas with an original expiry date between 22.2.26-31.5.26. If your visa expired before that date, it is not automatically extended.

AIC recommends contacting your local visa office via email as soon as possible to clarify your status and ask how to restore or renew your visa.

The gradual process requires you to keep your center of life in Israel, which most PIBA offices interpret as staying abroad no more than 90 days per visa year.

However, at the start of the Iron Swords war (October 2023) and during the first war with Iran (June 2025), PIBA clarified that each case will be examined individually, based on its specific circumstances.

AIC advises staying within the 90-day limit if possible, to avoid risking your status.

If it is confirmed that the Israeli partner is in active military service, the foreign partner may attend the appointment alone, with documentation proving the military service. The request will be handled according to standard procedures.

No! A visa extension does not delay your status upgrade or your gradual process timeline.

The extension is a technical measure to maintain lawful status during the war, while offices are closed. It does not affect eligibility, timelines, or the processing of a status upgrade or any stage of the gradual process. Once normal office activity resumes, your meetings and timeline continue from the same point. Eligibility for a status upgrade is determined by elapsed time, not by the number of meetings or renewals.