Jul 23, 2017
easy conversion for new immigrants drivers license
Good news for new immigrants to Israel, and for many other people..
Yisrael Katz, the Minister of Transportation, has announced new reforms in the transportation industry. A number of these reforms might be thought of as a big deal for a lot of people.
The reforms include issues such as:
- extending the age of the drivers license to 70 instead of requiring it to be renewed every ten years. Once the driver reaches 70, he or she will have to renew it every 5 years until the age of 80 and then every two years.
- adding more automated machines around the country, called RishyoMat, from the current 50 to the eventual 100. This makes it easier to print licenses and pay fees without having to step into the DMV and wait in line
- providing more DMV services via the post office. nobody really wants to wait in line at the post office either, so I am not sure this is a big deal, but maybe even the post office is better than waiting at the DMV
- installing an appointment system for the DMV
- new DMV offices around the country in cities that until now never had one
- more hours open to the public at the DMV
- and more
- and perhaps the biggest reform for many of the people I know... new immigrants will no longer need to go through the same bureaucracy when coming and converting the foreign license to an Israeli license. Until now new immigrants had to take a lesson and a test. This was basically part of the same scam the entire licensing procedures follow, just to get more money out of people while not necessarily producing better drivers. Now new immigrants will just be able to go to the DMV and convert their valid foreign drivers license to an Israeli license without going through the lesson and test procedure. The foreign license will have to have been valid for at least 5 years in order to be converted like this. this one is a big deal.
There are still a lot of uncertainties and questions as to how this will work, but hopefully that will be cleared up soon. Will it apply to people who have already gone through the procedure and failed the exam - will they now be able to get the Israeli license without further testing or are they up a creek because the failed exam is on their record? Will this apply only going forward or also to new immigrants already here under the old system?
This will ease the pain for many people, and thank you to whomever lobbied to get this done.
Yisrael Katz, the Minister of Transportation, has announced new reforms in the transportation industry. A number of these reforms might be thought of as a big deal for a lot of people.
The reforms include issues such as:
- extending the age of the drivers license to 70 instead of requiring it to be renewed every ten years. Once the driver reaches 70, he or she will have to renew it every 5 years until the age of 80 and then every two years.
- adding more automated machines around the country, called RishyoMat, from the current 50 to the eventual 100. This makes it easier to print licenses and pay fees without having to step into the DMV and wait in line
- providing more DMV services via the post office. nobody really wants to wait in line at the post office either, so I am not sure this is a big deal, but maybe even the post office is better than waiting at the DMV
- installing an appointment system for the DMV
- new DMV offices around the country in cities that until now never had one
- more hours open to the public at the DMV
- and more
- and perhaps the biggest reform for many of the people I know... new immigrants will no longer need to go through the same bureaucracy when coming and converting the foreign license to an Israeli license. Until now new immigrants had to take a lesson and a test. This was basically part of the same scam the entire licensing procedures follow, just to get more money out of people while not necessarily producing better drivers. Now new immigrants will just be able to go to the DMV and convert their valid foreign drivers license to an Israeli license without going through the lesson and test procedure. The foreign license will have to have been valid for at least 5 years in order to be converted like this. this one is a big deal.
There are still a lot of uncertainties and questions as to how this will work, but hopefully that will be cleared up soon. Will it apply to people who have already gone through the procedure and failed the exam - will they now be able to get the Israeli license without further testing or are they up a creek because the failed exam is on their record? Will this apply only going forward or also to new immigrants already here under the old system?
This will ease the pain for many people, and thank you to whomever lobbied to get this done.
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Rafi - the reason new Olim have to take a lesson and a test is not because of a "scam" - or at least not an Israeli scam. Until the mid-1990's, new Olim were, in fact, able to convert their non-Israeli license into an equivalent Israeli license with no additional testing requirement. During the major wave of aliyah from Russia, though, a large number of the new Olim would stop at the local Russian DMV and pay a few Rubles to get a license, no questions asked - and would then use these fraudulent licenses to get an Israeli license once they got here. As a result of this, the government decided to stop accepting Russian licenses.
ReplyDeleteThis, of course, was not acceptable to the Civil Libertarians, who immediately accused the government of racism. The government therefore decided to prove that they were not, in fact, racist - by making ALL new Olim - including those from Western countries - take a local Israeli test. By treating everyone equally badly, they could no longer be accused of racism!
Same thing happened to doctors and lawyers.
DeleteI know that and that is not what I was referring to. I was referring to the general scam of the DMV. The system they have in place that lets the instructors decide how many lessons you need (beyond the minimum) and they set the tests, and most people automatically fail the first 1-3 tests they take. new olim who have been driving for a dozen years and more have to take a lesson they have to pay for, often consisting of 5 minutes of driving (rtather than actually being taught any differences on Israeli roads) and then often are failed 1-2 times before passing. the entuire system is a scam to squeeze out as much money as possible form the Israeli driver. and the drivers still come out of it lousy. after 28-30 lessons, shouldn't they already be expert drivers?
ReplyDeleteWill the drivers license conversion be included in the Conversion Bill. Will we recognize Reform and Conservative conversions, or will the Orthodox Rabbinate have complete control over which driver license conversions are recognized and on who is allowed to drive.
ReplyDeleteI thought they're trying to get rid of corruption, not increase corruption.
Delete2. Only rabbis who passed this procedure can certify such olim. Why shouldn't they have to go through such produres.?
While you're at it, require rabbonim to go through the same procedures (and rejections) when they / their sons and daughters marry.
will the BAGATZ demand that reform get to set their own standards or simply declare anyone they want to be a driver without any standards at all? can each "denomination" demand equal access to the roads even if they make up their own rules of driving?
Delete