ELIGIBILITY
Are you eligible for a Taglit-Birthright Israel: CIE trip? Please read over the criteria:
Eligibility criteria for the program is as follows: You must be Jewish, between the ages of 18 - 26 years old and post-high school. If you have been to Israel before but only with your family or on other personal business, you are still eligible. However, if you have been to Israel as part of a touring group, educational program, study program or an organized extended residential program since you were 12 years old, you are not eligible. If you participated on the March of the Living you are eligible to participate on one of our programs if you turn 22 years of age during the year of travel. Eligible individuals are those recognized as Jewish by the Jewish community or by one of the recognized denominations of Judaism; or if either parent is Jewish AND the applicant does not actively practice another religion.
You are eligible if you are at least 18 years old on the date of departure of the program and not yet 27 years old by May 1, 2012. If you were born in Israel, or an Israeli Citizen, you are only eligible if you left Israel before the age of 12. You will be required to provide documentation proving that you have lived in Canada since the age of 12 in order to be considered eligible. This can be in the form of a Landed Immigrant Visa or a dated entrance letter from the school you attended at the time. If you served in the Israeli Army or volunteered on an Israeli Army base, you are not eligible. Students in exclusively Jewish Studies programs in any institute of higher learning, including Jewish Teacher Training Programs, Jewish Studies Programs (not including Jewish Studies major or minor candidates at secular institutions), Rabbinical Programs, Yeshivot/Seminaries, Jewish Communal Service Programs and the like are not eligible for our programs.
For confirmation of whether participation on a specific Israel trip affects your eligibility for our programs, please contact us at 1-800-567-4772/416-398-6931.
Every applicant MUST sucessfully complete a mandatory interview with their local Israel Experience representative.
* Note all Taglit-Birthright Israel: CIE programs are based on departure from Toronto.
Registration for Spring/Summer 2012 trips will open on February 14th at 12 Noon EST for past applicants.
Registration for Spring/Summer 2012 trips will open on February 15th at 10:00 am EST for new applicants.
IMPORTANT PASSPORT INFORMATION
A valid passport is one that expires a minimum of six months after your return date (i.e. if you return on July 1, 2012, your passport must be valid until at least January 1, 2013). If you do not currently have a valid passport, please contact your local passport office to begin your application process. Obtaining a valid passport can take up to six weeks. Application forms for Canadian passports may be obtained at major post offices. The form contains explicit instructions.
ATTENTION: QUEBEC RESIDENTS
Since November 26, 2001, only the following identity documents are accepted as proof of Canadian citizenship for Quebec-born citizens:
• A birth certificate issued after January 1, 1994 by the Directeur de l'état civil in the province of Quebec; contact the office at (514) 940-8500.
• A Certificate of Canadian Citizenship.
ATTENTION: ISRAELI CITIZENS
All participants who bear Israeli citizenship, single or dual (that is, they also have Canadian citizenship), or are children to Israeli parent(s) must clarify their status and obtain appropriate travel documents at the Israeli Consulate.
Furthermore, all Israeli citizens must travel with a valid Israeli passport. Depending on your status, you may also be required to obtain Israeli army exemption papers.
Please note that these documents may take 6-8 weeks to be processed. WE ENCOURAGE YOU TO BEGIN THIS PROCESS IMMEDIATELY ONCE YOU HAVE APPLIED FOR A TRIP.
In order to expedite the documentation process, CIE can provide participants assigned to a trip with an official letter stating that the participant is confirmed on a trip when requested.
For more information please contact the Israeli Consulate nearest you AS SOON AS POSSIBLE to speak with a consular staff:
Ottawa: 613-567-6450 || Toronto: 416-640-8500 || Montreal: 514-940-8500
Please do not hesitate to contact us at Canada Israel Experience for clarification of eligibility rules at 1–800-567-4772 or ciec@ujafed.org
Let Canada Israel Experience treat you to a trip of a lifetime!