A plan to bring home Israeli expatriates was presented to the Cabinet.
Immigrant Absorption Minister Yaakov Edri on Sunday presented a plan of tax breaks and incentives designed to encourage some of the 700,000 Israelis living abroad to return. Some 60 percent live in North America, according to Israel Radio.
This year, 4,000 Israelis have returned, of which 1,600 are academics or engineers, according to the Jerusalem Post.
The new plan’s incentives include job placement services, special health-care benefits and tax breaks on new homes and electrical appliances. The absorption ministry has invested nearly $38.7 million on the campaign so far.
The plan comes on the heels of a new study that says children of Israeli expatriates are losing their Jewish identity.
The study by the Rapaport Center of Bar-Ilan University found that the children born to Israeli expatriates are assimilating quickly, with a quarter of those living in Europe intermarrying and 60 percent not participating in any Jewish activities.
