The Israeli Passport Stamp

The Israeli passport stamp used to be a question many visitors asked. Today, that question might still be asked but the answer is simple. The Israeli passport stamp is no more. Rather, border officials give you an entry visa automatically on a piece of paper. No more stamps in passports. Although if you really want one, they might let you!

The Israeli Passport Stamp on Paper

The traditional way that visitors to Israel have got around the Israeli passport stamp “problem” has been by asking the border officials to stamp a piece of paper or entry card. In fact, since early 2013, at Ben Gurion Airport, passport stamping has almost totally stopped and been replaced by the issuing of an entry card. This solves the problem for most visitors…

Whilst your passport might not contain an Israeli passport stamp if you decide to make a trip to Jordan or Egypt via the land borders with Israel, the Jordanian or Egyptian border officials will stamp your passport. Trained agents in many Arab countries will see these stamps and consider them the same as having an Israeli entry stamp. The officials from Jordan and Egypt will usually have no problem stamping a piece of paper

Do Arab Stamps Cause A Problem Entering Israel?

There’s a myth that Israel bans entry to people with passport stamps from countries who ban entry to those with Israeli passport stamps. You can expect some questions when you enter Israel regarding the nature of your visit to those countries. But Many people conduct business across the Middle East. Increasingly, people are backpacking or traveling across the region. So it’s not uncommon, and not in any way in itself a problem when entering Israel.