Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Finance Minister Yisrael Katz have decided to extend the period of legibility for unemployment benefit for those who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus epidemic until the middle of August.
Grants given to those over the age of 67 who were laid off due to the epidemic and have not been offered their jobs back have also been extended until the same date. In mid-August, the situation will be reviewed to decide whether further extensions are in order.
The Prime Minister's Office said in a statement: "The decision was reached after consultation with economics experts as well as the Governor of the Bank of Israel and the head of the National Economic Council, and is derived from the government's policy of encouraging business and promoting jobs, as well as from our concern for each and every one of the citizens of Israel. In order to expedite the new legislation, the new regulations will be added as a clause to the existing laws [already presented to the Knesset] and will proceed directly to their second and third readings."