Teudat Maavar and Darkon: list of countries for visa-free entry
Israel is the only country in the world where citizens can obtain not just one type of passport (travel document), but two – Darkon or Teudat Maavar. However, the choice of passport type is not available to everyone.
Teudat Maavar — Israeli travel document in lieu of national passport (often called a laissez-passer), grants visa-free entry to more than 50 countries. Its cover is red. Both Israeli citizens and permanent residents (to’shav keva) are eligible to obtain this type of passport.
Darkon — Israeli national passport, grants visa-free entry to 160 countries. The cover color is blue. It can be issued for 1 year, 5 years, and 10 years, depending on the duration of residence in Israel . More about the rules for issuing the Darkon that came into effect on July 10, 2023: read the article.
To update information on which countries grant visa-free entry to Israelis holding the Teudat Maavar, our law office sent official letters to the embassies, ministries of foreign affairs, and ministries of internal affairs of those countries.
Travel Document (Teudat Maavar) –
List of Countries for Visa-Free Entry
ATTENTION: We continuously update information; please carefully review the comments!
We accumulate practical experience and incorporate it into the table. The responses provided below represent the official stance of the authorized agencies provided to us at the time of the request, but practices may vary in each specific case. It is important to remember that the decision regarding entry/exit is authorized by the border control officers on duty. It is IMPORTANT to note that problems have increasingly arisen not related to the type of Israeli passport but solely due to the traveler holding Russian citizenship (even without a valid Russian passport).
Albania
document
A visa is required! The duration of stay in Europe (all countries combined) is up to 90 days within a six-month period.
Andorra
Waiting for a response
Argentina
document
The passport must be valid for at least 6 months at the time of entry.
Austria
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Belarus
document
A visa is required! With a darkon, visa-free entry for up to 90 days within a 6-month period.
Belgium
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Brazil
document
There is no need to apply for a visa, however, the very type of passport, as it has a temporary nature, may not be accepted at border control. The consulate recommends, to avoid difficulties, to visit the country with a darkon (Israeli passport).
Bulgaria
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period, the passport must be valid for at least 3 months from the date of departure. These rules are valid for those whose citizenship is written as ‘Israeli’. IN PRACTICE: border control officers may deny entry without a visa to holders of a ‘teudat ma’avar’.
Colombia
Waiting for a response
Costa Rica
Oral answer – visa processing is required
Croatia
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Cyprus
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months
Czech Republic
document
The duration of stay is up to 90 days within a six-month period. However, in some cases, it is possible to stay up to one year (interested parties should verify with the Czech Republic’s Ministry of the Interior). These rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’.
Denmark
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months, the validity of the passport at the time of departure must be at least 3 months. These rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Ecuador
document
The duration of stay is up to 90 days within a six-month period, the passport validity at the time of entry must be at least 6 months. These rules are applicable for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’.
Estonia
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’. HOWEVER, for those who also have Russian citizenship, it is necessary to verify the possibility of entry in advance using the contact details provided in the letter.
Fiji
Oral answer – for those whose citizenship line reads ‘Israeli’, visa-free entry is allowed
Finland
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is written as ‘Israeli’. For those whose citizenship is indicated as belonging to another country, for example, ‘Russia’, a visa is required!
France
The period of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months. The validity of the passport at the time of departure must be at least 3 months. You will receive an individual response on the official page after filling out the form at https://france-visas.gouv.fr/en/web/france-visas/visa-application-guidelines
Georgia
document
Up to 1 year
Germany
document
The duration of stay in Europe (collectively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Greece
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Hong Kong
Waiting for a response
Hungary
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Ireland
document
The duration of stay in Europe (collectively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’. The decision is at the discretion of the border control service.
Italy
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Japan
document
The duration of stay is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules apply to those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’.
Latvia
document
The duration of stay is up to 180 days. The rules apply to those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Liechtenstein
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Lithuania
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Luxembourg
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’ (the same rules apply as in Switzerland).
Mexico
document
Up to 90 days within six months
Moldova
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Monaco
The period of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within six months. The validity of the passport at the time of departure must be at least 3 months. You will receive an individual response on the official page after filling out the form at https://france-visas.gouv.fr/en/web/france-visas/visa-application-guidelines
Netherlands
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
New Zealand
Waiting for a response
Norway
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Paraguay
document
NO ENTRY PERMISSION with this type of passport
Poland
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is written as ‘Israeli’. IN PRACTICE: border control officers may deny entry with any type of international passport from any country if the traveler also has Russian citizenship.
Portugal
Oral answer – The duration of stay is up to 90 days within six months. The rules are valid for those who have ‘Israeli’ written in the citizenship line.
Romania
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Russia
Up to 90 days within six months
San Marino
Waiting for a response
Serbia
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Seychelles Islands
The verbal response of the consul – for those whose citizenship line reads ‘Israeli’, visa-free entry is permitted
Singapore
document
Up to 30 days. The rules are valid for those with ‘Israeli’ written in the citizenship line. No less than 3 days before arrival, it is necessary to fill out the SGAC declaration.
Slovakia
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Slovenia
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is written as ‘Israeli’. For those whose citizenship indicates a different nationality, a visa is required!
Spain
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period
Sweden
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Switzerland
document
The duration of stay in Europe (cumulatively all countries) is up to 90 days within a six-month period. The rules are valid for those whose citizenship is listed as ‘Israeli’
Uruguay
document
A VISA is required!
About us
The office provides legal services in the field of immigration, family, commercial and labor law, conducts real estate transactions, develops individual solutions for businesses and individuals, and provides legal support to Israeli and international companies. Our lawyers regularly participate in the work of specialized commissions at the Chamber of Lawyers of Israel and the Knesset, create judicial precedents, improve regulatory mechanisms in various areas of law, provide advisory assistance to official representative offices of foreign states and significant public organizations located in Israel and abroad.
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I want to thank the team of professionals of Alex Zernopolsky! They helped my son in obtaining Israeli citizenship! The work was done in a timely manner, all obstacles were overcome, and the results were excellent! The staff themselves are responsive, kind people, always ready to help with any request! It’s a pleasure to work with them! Thank you to Alex for the help and to his entire team: Anna, Valeria, and Yana! I wish them health, and I’m confident that they will continue to help people for a long time!
Miri and Sergey
We are a couple who came to lawyer Alex Zernopolsky after numerous rejections from the Ministry of Interior, during the process of obtaining citizenship for my husband. We had faced a very unpleasant experience and were literally shaken by repeated encounters with officials who were insensitive to people’s feelings, and their comments were inappropriate, to put it mildly. After turning to the Ministry of Interior, Alex and lawyer Anna from his office, who were always ready to listen to us and always there for us, my husband finally received citizenship a week ago. This happened thanks to the professional and humane approach of Alex Zernopolsky’s law firm. We are very happy that fate brought us together and we can recommend this office to everyone who wants to feel at home, and the lawyers will take care of your interests. This is the best that exists in today’s market in Israel. Alex delivers on what he promises, one hundred percent.
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A lawyer in Israel is not a luxury, but a guide through the bureaucratic hell that is the state apparatus. However, it’s hard to call it an apparatus because none of the circles of hell exchange information with any other, ordinary demons have far more authority than their superiors, and sinners can appeal to the law – earthly or heavenly – as much as they like, but in every district office of hell, there is an ‘internal instruction’ that contradicts each law. (And then another one that contradicts the previous one.) In the end, laws come and go with each government, but the demons stay at their cauldrons for generations. Perhaps this system was invented by the founding fathers themselves to prevent the usurpation of power in the future. Try to build totalitarianism in a country where every street-level bureaucrat is, at heart, an anarcho-syndicalist. Therefore, going to court in Israel is not a challenge to the state, but a normal way to start a dialogue with it. It’s all like at the market: if you don’t bargain, you don’t respect. If you don’t sue, it means you don’t acknowledge. So an Israeli lawyer is always a bit more than just a lawyer. He combines the skills of Virgil, a stalker, a dramatic actor, a social worker, an ethnographer, and a psychotherapist. At least, a good lawyer does. I was incredibly lucky with my lawyer. With Alex Zernopolsky, we not only won the case. I found thirty new research topics – so fascinating was the structure of the Israeli bureaucracy ‘from the inside’. Now we will write in co-authorship.
Maxim Katz
I personally use the services of this law firm, and when someone from our team needs some help, we turn to Zernopolsky. So I am happy to recommend him.
The office of Alex deals with any issues in the field of immigration law in Israel: repatriation, legalization of family members, proof of paternity and kinship through DNA, and any complex cases.
Mikhail Pellivert
Not an advertisement, but a recommendation! I don’t know how often you have legal questions about various aspects of life in Israel, but I’ll venture to guess quite frequently. Pay attention to the channel (https://t.me/pravo_israel) of lawyer Alex Zernopolsky, – you will learn a lot of useful and instructive things. Here, for example, is a list (https://t.me/pravo_israel/129) of countries you can enter without a visa with a laissez-passer. In short, I sincerely recommend subscribing.
Roman Super
In Israel, where every third person calls themselves a lawyer, it’s really not easy to find a good one. A childhood friend introduced me to the office of Alex Zernopolsky in 2015. And since then, if any legal issues arise (and they do often in Israel), I go to Alex. All the intricacies and details about repatriation and the post-repatriation period. Family reunification problems. Labor conflicts. Difficulties with banks. Gay marriages. Traditional marriages. Certificates. Apostilles. Notaries. Passport. Laissez-passer. Driver’s licenses. How to bypass 5 windows in two weeks, not two months. How not to go crazy dealing with the immigration service. And millions of other problems in a country where bureaucracy isn’t very friendly to people — that’s for Alex and his guys. And if you find other lawyers in Tel Aviv who respond to messages and calls on the first try, let me know. So far, I’ve only encountered such luxury in Israel here.
Vladimir Brailovsky
We are grateful to Alex Zernopolsky for his significant help in our difficult situation. We were denied citizenship three times, but thanks to Alex and his firm’s efforts, we obtained a residence permit and are confident that our problem will be fully resolved soon.
Andrew Tsaran
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Igal K
I want to thank Alex Zernopolsky for the professional consultation and help with the complex issues that we couldn’t figure out on our own. We read through chats and channels and almost made mistakes. Thank you guys for the help!