Financial packages offered to Israeli emigrants to encourage return
Rental assistance, grants, NIS 20,000-worth discounts offered to Israeli families living in US to encourage their return to country.
Monthly rental subsidies, grants to start businesses and a variety of discounts in education, culture and leisure – these are only some of the benefits offered by the Ministry for Development of the Negev and the Galilee to Israelis living in the US, if they return to Israel and settle in the country's southern areas. The value of the proposed package for a returning family is amounted at NIS 20,000.
On Sunday, a conference entitled "Returning Home" will be held in Manhattan, New York, and hundreds of Israeli emigrants are expected to attend. The ministry officials will attempt to encourage the Israelis to return with the help of the financial package, along with a basket of benefits to which they are entitled, given by the the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption of Israel.
The initiative is a joint effort of the Ministry for Development of the Negev and the Ministry of Immigrant Absorption of Israel, in an attempt to persuade young Israelis who made yerida (left Israel) to return. During the conference, the different benefits will be presented, as part of a two-year absorption program, the budget of which is set at NIS 8 million.
"The benefits for returning Israeli citizens will include rent subsidies and grants for finding a job or starting a business worth NIS 5,600," ministry officials said.
Under the program, more than 400 families will settle within the next two years in the Negev and Galilee. So far, approximately 50 families have already made their way to Israel as part of the program.
Sigal Shaltiel-Halevy, Director-General of the Ministry for the Development of the Negev and the Galilee, who is expected to take part in the conference, said: "The registration for the conference closed 72 hours after its opening. We issued a message saying that we are sorry, but that we cannot fit any more people in the conference hall.
"The number of people who registered surprised us," Shaltiel-Halevy said, adding that "in March, we will conduct more conferences throughout the US."
Struggle for survival in Holy Land
One Israeli who is seriously considering the offer is Gil Yarimi, a married father of two, originally from Yokneam Illit. He left Israel in 2007, and currently lives in New York where he works as a freelancer.
Yarimi said that following his discharge from regular service, he was not given an opportunity to earn enough money to live on or save funds to buy a house.
"I was not born to rich parents, and even then I understood that life in the Holy Land will be a war of survival. Israel is a great country to raise children, there is no doubt about that. However, in the same breath, I am not ashamed to say that I will not bring children into the world where they will only be given food. What about a good education? That costs a lot of money."
Yarimi said that he chose life in the United States in order to fulfill his dreams, after he failed to do so in Israel. "When I was out of the army at 21 years of age, ready to devour the world, I thought it was out of the question for me to work so hard an entire month for a monthly NIS 4,000 – that didn't not even cover fair housing, a car, insurance and gas.
"I came to the US and when I filled up the gas tank of the car for the first time, I had the pleasure to find out that $40 was enough for a week's worth of driving, which in Israel would cost NIS 350, twice the price."
On the other hand, Yerimi said, he still finds it hard to be so far from family and friends. Speaking of his recent considerations, he said: "We've had a burning desire recently (to move) following the wave of violence and anti-Semitism in the world. We understood that we have no other country, although there are other options. We are going back to Israel and examining our options because right now is the most critical period."
