Tour guides

​The National Insurance Institute, in association with the Tour Guides Association and the Moreshet Derech Association, publishes guidelines for the payment of unemployment benefits to those whose income decreased due to the spread of novel coronavirus and the crisis in the inbound and outbound tourism industry.

Those who returned to work are asked to notify us. For online notification, click here.

Which tour guides are entitled to unemployment benefits

A tour guide who worked as an employee or a self-employed tour guide who does not own a "group car".
Other conditions of entitlement are detailed in this link.

Due to a legislative amendment, as of 1.9.20, tour guides with "group car" can accrue a qualifying period to be eligible for unemployment benefits. This amendment allows you to be entitled to unemployment benefit only after accruing 6 or 10 months of work since September 1. In other words, you will only be able to receive unemployment benefits as of March 2021 - click here to learn more.

Registering with Employment Service

How to submit claim to the National Insurance Institute

To shorten the claim's handling time, we ask you to submit to us an online claim for unemployment benefit (BL/1500) through the website.

On the claim form, under the section "main employment, field of occupation", you have to indicate your occupation and add next to it that it is in accordance with Insured People Classification Order.
We advise you to sign up to the Personal Service Site, to be able to follow online the status of your claim.

What documents should be attached to the claim?

To unemployment claims submitted for unemployment period starting from 1.7.2020, the following documents must be attached:

• Tour guide declared as salaried employee: must make sure that his employer has sent a Form 100 to us, mentioning the date and cause of work stoppage.
  If the employer is unable to issue a Form 100, he must be asked to complete a Form 1514 - Employer authorization of employment period and pay.
  The form needs to be attached to the claim or sent to us through the website.
• Tour guide not declared as salaried but covered by the Classification of Insured Persons Order, needs to attach the following documents:
  - Form 806 or 857 – those who worked without pay slips but with invoices/receipts, should ask the entity they worked with (such as a travel agencies) for a 806 or 857 form for 2019, mentioning the amounts deducted for national and health insurance contributions. This is the travel agents' statement form sent to Income Tax Authority regarding your employment, which is used to set up source deduction of national and health insurance contributions on their behalf. You have the right to receive this form and travel agents have the legal obligation to declare their employment and give that form to tour guides!
  - Authorization for fiscal year 2020 - you must ask the agents you have worked with for a written authorization, including a list of all months of employment, and mentioning wage for each month and source deductions for national and health insurance contributions.

Amount of unemployment benefit

For a quick and easy calculation of the benefit according to your salary, you can use this unemployment benefit calculator.

One must enter into the calculator all the sums you were paid by the agents you worked for that same month, as detailed in Form 857.
For more information about benefit rates, click here.

Please note, your income as self-employed will be deducted from your unemployment benefits.
Based on the 857 forms you have sent us, will be determined out of the annual tax assessment, the income from which insurance contributions were deducted as salaried employee, and the income as self-employed. Income as self-employed will be deducted from unemployment benefits over the year.

For guidelines to the self-employed, click here.

Period of eligibility for unemployment benefits

The number of days for which you can receive unemployment benefits varies according to your age and family composition – for more information see this link.

During the unemployment period, you must be available for job offers from the Employment Service, and reach the Bureau of the Employment Service at scheduled times for you, just like any other job seeker.

If during the period of entitlement to unemployment benefit, you returned to work part-time, as a self-employed covered by the Classification of Insured Persons Order, you are obligated to notify us.
You have to attach a statement of work start and work termination, and produce the documents according to the options below:

• Authorization from the agent you worked for, including: details about the month of work, level of monthly wage, deductions of insurance contributions and number of days of work.
• Your personal statement regarding the payment you have received and the number of working days each month.

This payment will be deducted from your unemployment benefits. The documents may be sent to us via the website.

Who to contact?