Iranian Jews are generally allowed to travel to Israel and emigrate abroad, though they must submit passport and visa requests to a special section of the passport office, face restrictions on families leaving en masse, and travels to Israel must be done via a third country. However, the rate of emigration has been low. Between October 2005 and September 2006, 152 Jews left Iran, down from 297 during the same period the previous year, and 183 the year before that. Most of those who left allegedly cited economic and family reasons as their main incentives for leaving. In July 2007, Iran's Jewish community rejected financial emigration incentives to leave Iran. Offers ranging from 5,000 to 30,000 British pounds, financed by a wealthy expatriate Jew with the support of the Israeli government, were turned down by Iran's Jewish leaders.Iran's Jews reject cash offer to move to Israel, The Guardian, Retrieved 2011-05-09.Iran's Jews spurn cash lure to immigrate to Israel, The Guardian, Retrieved 2011-05-09. To place the incentives in perspective, the sums offered were up to 3 times or more than the average annual income for an Iranian.Economy of Iran However, in late 2007 at least forty Iranian Jews accepted financial incentives offered by Jewish charities for immigrating to Israel.Iranian Jews immigrate to Israel, JTA, 25 December 2007
