Ulpan question

[Vlad]

I currently plan to stay with the Sar-El program until my enlistment date (If I get accepted into Sar-El, I'll enlist with Mahal), and since I don't know Hebrew too well, I'll be sent to an Ulpan. However, will I be sent to the Ulpan immediately, or is there a waiting period? I am enlisting with Sar-El because there is nowhere else in Israel I can find accommodation. I don't know enough Hebrew to get by, I don't qualify for Beit Hachachayal because I have immediate family, yet the only family I have are two elderly grandparents who could not be able to take me in. If there is a waiting period and I'm on my own until the date I get sent to the Ulpan in Karmiel, I won't survive the period in between.

So is there a waiting period from your enlistment date to when you go to ulpan, and from when you graduate ulpan into the IDF, or are there periods in between?

[Dan from Boston]

As far as I know, if your parents do not live in Israel for over 3 months of the year, you qualify as a chayal boded. As for the beit hachayal, I would not recommend "living" there. It's a hostel and not a place to call home. There are many kibbutz programs available and I would suggest looking into one of those.

As for the IDF ulpan, that is part of your service. When you are a soldier, though, you need to have a place to live. As a chayal boded, you will receive an allowance to pay for an apartment and associated costs. You also have the option of living on a kibbutz when you're not on base. As also mentioned on the main site, you are responsible for your own lodgings before beginning your military service, and you need to arrive a minimum of 6 weeks before your planned enlistment date to get your A2 visa, arrange for the enlistment, etc.

Have you already filled out the registration form at www.mahal-idf-volunteers.org?

[Vlad]

As far as I know, if your parents do not live in Israel for over 3 months of the year, you qualify as a chayal boded. As for the beit hachayal, I would not recommend "living" there. It's a hostel and not a place to call home. There are many kibbutz programs available and I would suggest looking into one of those.

Where can I find some of these kibbutz programs? And how long does it take to be eligible for Beit Chachayal after your arrival in Israel?

[Dan from Boston]

I would google for the kibbutz programs. I don't know much about them, and the information should be online.

Beit haChayal is for soldiers. You can't stay there until you're in the military. And again, it's not a place to call home. You need to figure out a different place to stay both before and after you've begun your service. If you start out on a kibbutz, you can still decide to move into an apartment with friends you've made in the army at a later point.

[Vlad]

I would google for the kibbutz programs. I don't know much about them, and the information should be online.

Beit haChayal is for soldiers. You can't stay there until you're in the military. And again, it's not a place to call home. You need to figure out a different place to stay both before and after you've begun your service. If you start out on a kibbutz, you can still decide to move into an apartment with friends you've made in the army at a later point.

Well, the only thing I can find is to become a kibbutz volunteer until my enlistment date. Basically, a volunteer stays on a kibbutz for two to six months, get some pocket money, and gets three days off. I've also looked into Sar-El, but it appears they only get weekends off. Aside from their three days off on the kibbutz (and I don't know whether they can even choose which days they get off), volunteers have to stay on the kibbutz unless they want to leave for good and quit the program early. I know that before your enlistment date, you are scheduled an appointment at the IDF Recruitment Bureau, but do you have a say in the case of which date you are chosen? Can you reschedule?

[Dan from Boston]

The reason you don't have much freedom on the kibbutz before the army is because you're paying for your spot by working there. Every program that comes with free housing will of course come with certain restrictions. There's no way around that and I think it's reasonable. You may want to contact them individually, though, to discuss your situation and see if they will allow you to stay for less than the minimum 2 months or to create some other kind of arrangement as a soon-to-be-enlisted volunteer. They may have a financial incentive to do so if you stay at the kibbutz during your service and they receive your housing money.

I'm not sure what you mean by "which date you are chosen." Do you mean if you have a say in your enlistment date? The answer to that would be yes, more or less. First, you still haven't answered my question about the registration form. That should be your first step in any case when you're even considering the program. There is no obligation attached, but it will determine your eligibility. Once you have done that, and when you've made your decision, you can go ahead and plan to get the ball rolling to get into a specific draft. The relevant links are all on the main site at http://www.mahal-idf-volunteers.org . Specific enlistment dates are posted there as they are announced by the IDF. You can prepare for these specific dates and plan your timeline around them. There is no guarantee that it will all work out for a specific date, especially if you haven't followed instructions or obtained all the necessary documentation in advance. However, if you do follow instructions, get the documents you need before you leave, arrive in Israel on time, and do what's required, there's generally no reason you shouldn't start your service at the posted date for which you've planned. However, once you've received your orders to report for your first day of service, you can't simply "reschedule" either to a different draft or to a different day, of course.

Does that answer your questions?

[Vlad]

Thanks for the help. I did register, and am currently awaiting a response.

However, it looks as though I won't be able to get an Israeli passport, however, because consulates don't accept personal checks or cash, and I don't have a credit card. It looks as though I will need to go to Israel on a work visa for the kibbutz volunteer program. How can I register as a citizen in Israel, or at least prevent myself from getting deported once the visa expires?

[Dan from Boston]

That sounds like an inconvenient problem... can your parents not help you? And will the consulate also not accept a money order? Otherwise, if you have a bank account, you ought to be able to get a debit card at the very least which works as a credit card.

Otherwise, you should be able to solve this in Israel as well. Unfortunately, I can't help you with the specifics but I'd suggest you google to find other people who were in a situation similar to yours.

[Vlad]

That sounds like an inconvenient problem... can your parents not help you? And will the consulate also not accept a money order? Otherwise, if you have a bank account, you ought to be able to get a debit card at the very least which works as a credit card.

Otherwise, you should be able to solve this in Israel as well. Unfortunately, I can't help you with the specifics but I'd suggest you google to find other people who were in a situation similar to yours.

My parents absolutely refuse to help, which is part of the problem. They aren't exactly fond of me doing this.

Yes, I have a debit card my parents got for me not too long ago, but still kind of new to it. Can I really use it exactly like a credit card? I would think it was only for drawing cash out of ATMs.

[Dan from Boston]

Well, this isn't a financial advice forum, but yes, you should know that you can use your debit card as a credit card. The money is simply drawn directly from the associated bank account.