Treatment in Israel: from entry permit to return home

Why do Georgian patients go to Israel?

Patients from Georgia mostly choose Israel for oncology and haematology, including bone marrow transplantation, as well as for cardiology, neurosurgery, paediatrics and reproductive medicine. The country's large hospitals have dedicated international patient departments, and the flight from Tbilisi is relatively short. Many families have relatives or acquaintances in Israel, which makes day-to-day organisation easier.

Treatment in Israel is not cheap and often approaches European prices. In recent years the country's security situation has also affected flights and planned visits, so take this factor into account when planning dates. Choosing a country is a medical decision to be made together with your treating doctor; if you are looking for alternatives, compare the Germany and Turkey guides as well.

In practice the first step is almost always remote. The international department receives the translated history, passes it to a doctor in the relevant department and within a few days or weeks replies in writing with what it proposes and what it will cost. At this stage you pay nothing and buy no ticket: first show the reply to your Georgian treating doctor, and only then decide whether the trip is worth it. If the reply is slow to arrive, send one polite reminder and contact another hospital in parallel.

What does a Georgian citizen need to enter Israel?

Under a bilateral agreement between Georgia and Israel, Georgian citizens do not need a visa for short-term visits. However, since 2025 Israel has required citizens of visa-exempt countries to hold an electronic travel authorisation, ETA-IL, which must be obtained before the flight. Without it, the airline may refuse to board you.

1. Application on the official website

   The ETA-IL application is completed on the website of Israel's Population and Immigration Authority, israel-entry.piba.gov.il. There are many intermediary websites online that sell the same service at a much higher price, so check the address carefully.

2. Time for a response

   Submit the application several days before departure: the official recommendation is at least 72 hours in advance. It is best to confirm your ticket and hospital date after you have received the permit.

3. Permit validity

   An approved ETA-IL allows multiple entries and is generally valid for two years or until the passport expires, whichever comes first. If you change your passport, you will need a new permit.

4. Accompanying person

   The permit is individual: every traveller, including a child, needs their own application.

The limit for a short visa-free stay is generally 90 days. If treatment runs beyond this period, the local immigration authority decides on extending your stay, so discuss the matter with the hospital's international department in advance and ask for a letter confirming continued treatment. Detailed checks and documents are covered by our medical visa and entry documents service.

How do you check a hospital and an intermediary in Israel?

In Israel, international patients are accepted both by large public and non-profit hospitals and by private medical centres. All of them need a Ministry of Health licence, and some also hold international JCI accreditation. Accreditation tells you about safety processes; you need to ask separately about experience with your diagnosis.

Medical tourism agent

Medical tourism in Israel is regulated by a dedicated law adopted in 2018, and intermediaries who connect foreign patients with hospitals must be registered with the Ministry of Health. If you work with an intermediary, ask for proof of registration and find out who pays their fee: you, the hospital or both. Their service fee should be set out in a separate contract and must not be hidden in the treatment invoice.

What the hospital's written offer should include

• a preliminary diagnosis, to be confirmed or changed on site, and a list of the required examinations;
• the proposed treatment, its significant risks and its expected duration;
• the name and department of the doctor in charge of treatment;
• an itemised price, together with what the price does not include;
• the deposit amount, payment deadline and refund terms if the plan changes.

If an offer is too general or "confirms" a diagnosis without seeing the documents, that is a reason to stop. At the selection stage, an independent second opinion will help you judge how well the offer fits your case.

Which language, and how should documents be translated?

The local working language of Israeli hospitals is Hebrew, but international departments and doctors read foreign medical documents in English. Patients are not usually asked for a Hebrew translation. So have your discharge summary, test results, imaging reports and histology translated into English, with consistent terminology and Latin names spelled the same way in every document.

For the hospital's assessment, an ordinary medical translation is enough. An official format becomes necessary when a document goes to an Israeli state authority, court or insurer: in that case, first ask the recipient which format it accepts and whether the Georgian original needs an apostille. Our apostille and legalisation tool answers that question.

Ask the international department which languages your coordinator speaks, but remember that for a Georgian patient, diagnosis and risks are explained most precisely in their native language. If no one in the family speaks the doctor's language, a medical interpreter will be especially useful when signing consent and on the day of discharge. The calculator shows an indicative price for translating your documents.

What to prepare and when: a timeline

The sequence below is for typical planned treatment. In an emergency the steps run in parallel, but none is skipped. You can find what a complete medical package includes in the documents guide.

How do foreign patients pay at an Israeli hospital?

A foreign patient generally pays for treatment in Israel from their own funds or through foreign insurance. Hospitals often ask for a deposit equal to the cost of the proposed treatment, or part of it, before arrival, and for staged payments during long treatment. The exact terms depend on the hospital, so they should be stated in writing in the offer.

When treatment ends, ask for an itemised final bill and compare it with the deposit. If fewer services were provided than planned, ask how and within what period the difference is refunded. If you cover part of the cost in Georgia through a state programme or municipal assistance, you will need the invoices and receipts translated into Georgian: the route is described in the surgery funding guide.

Travel and daily life during treatment

• Security and flights: before departure, check the recommendations of Georgia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the status of flights. Save the contact numbers of the Georgian Embassy in Israel and read which exclusions in your insurance policy relate to war or security risks.
• The Shabbat rhythm: from Friday evening to Saturday evening many institutions and public transport run a limited service. Plan scheduled consultations and administrative matters with this in mind.
• Accommodation: for an outpatient course, such as chemotherapy, a flat near the hospital is the most convenient. Ask whether the international department offers a partner hotel.
• Medicines: take your current medicines in their original packaging with an English prescription. Check the entry rules for potent drugs in advance.
• Finances: tell your bank you will be using your card abroad and check the limit for large payments in advance.

During long treatment, the accompanying family member effectively becomes the patient's administrator: they arrange appointments, collect receipts, deal with the hospital's accounts office and keep the family back in Georgia informed. It is a good idea for them to have the patient's written consent for the hospital to share medical information with them. Ask the international department about such a form on the very first day.

After your return: documents and follow-up

On discharge, the Israeli hospital gives you a discharge document, sometimes in Hebrew. Ask in advance, already at the offer stage, for the final document to be provided in English as well: translating from Hebrew into Georgian is harder and takes longer. Also ask for the records of the examinations performed in digital format.

As soon as you return to Georgia, the discharge document should be translated into Georgian so that your local doctor can continue treatment. Medicines prescribed in Israel often have a different brand name in Georgia, so the translation must give the international name and dose. Our discharge summary translation service does exactly this. If a medicine prescribed in Israel is not sold in Georgia, consider medicine import.

After oncology and haematology treatment, follow-up often lasts months or years. Agree with the Israeli department which tests you will have in Georgia, how you will send the results and who will respond if your condition changes. Your local doctor and the foreign colleague read each other's reports through translation, so translate each new result promptly and keep everything in one digital archive.

Frequently asked questions about treatment in Israel