The Sar-El Alternative Service program is aimed at Israeli citizens living abroad who did not serve in the Israeli Army and who are over 27 years old.  The objective of the Sar-El Alternative Service Program is to finalize the status of the volunteer with the Israeli Army.  

 If, as an Israeli living abroad, you decide to volunteer through the Sar-El Alternative Service, you will be assigned volunteer work at one of the army bases in Israel.  By completing the volunteering period successfully, your status with the military will be resolved and you will be able to enter and leave Israel without restrictions. 

The type of work that will be assigned to volunteers will be based on the requirements of the IDF, the volunteer's professional background, skills and experience.

Then you will have to contact us at Sar-El (see contact info below) at least three  weeks prior to your arrival so that we can make all the necessary arrangements for you.

Sar-El  contact information: 

Tel (1): +972-3-681-3429

Tel (2): +972-3- 526-7513 (phone/fax) 

Once we have discussed your volunteering and you have finalized your participation through your local consulate you will have to bring with you the following items:

·         ID (Tehudat Zehut)

·         Passports (Israeli & foreign)   

·         Medical Insurance Coverage for your stay in Israel (mandatory)

·         Personal belongings for a period of at least three weeks

Prior to coming to Israel, you will also have to inform your local Consulate about the dates of your arrival and departure so that we can arrange for you to travel without restrictions.

You should also contact 'Minhal Hagius' (Tel: +972-3- 738-8888 ) to ensure your status is approved and to receive additional details about your service. You will receive a letter from the Consulate  &/or Minhal Hagiyus stating the details about your service. 

 On your first day, you  must come to our office, located at 111 Jerusalem Boulevard,  Tel Aviv/ Jaffa.  You will have an interview with the Commander / Deputy Commander / other Officer before you are sent to the location of your volunteer work (which could be in any one of our IDF bases.)

 You can work on the base during the day and return to family in the evenings; or you can opt to sleep on the base all week. You must tell us your choice in advance so we can make proper arrangements.

At the end of your service you will return to our office in Jaffa for another interview.  You will then receive a confirmation in writing from the Sar-El Commander if you have  finished your volunteer work successfully.  This confirmation resolves your open status with the Army.