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The Challenge (Problem)Approximately 60,000 asylum seekers are currently living in Israel, about half of them from Sudan and Eritrea. Based on our work with HIAS social workers and the research we conducted, we identified three main barriers:

Language barrier: Most government forms and digital interfaces are available only in Hebrew, a language many refugees cannot read.

Bureaucratic complexity: The need to renew visas, register children, and obtain medical rights involves complicated forms that even many Israelis struggle to understand.

Fear and lack of trust: Concern about direct interaction with state authorities causes many people to avoid exercising their rights.

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The Solution
Refuge is a mobile‑first digital wallet and voice‑based assistant that mediates between refugees and state bureaucracy.
Users interact in Arabic, while the system translates their information into formal Hebrew and generates ready‑to‑submit government forms.

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Key Feature: The Intake Process
One of the biggest challenges was entering the initial information. Instead of asking the refugee to fill out an endless form alone, we created a smart hybrid process:

Guided intake: The process takes place during the first meeting with a HIAS social worker, who helps complete the information together with the user.

Smart OCR: Instead of typing data manually, the system scans the passport or visa and automatically extracts details such as name, ID number, date of birth, and visa validity.

One-time entry: All information (children, address, legal status, etc.) is stored in a secure database. From that point on, every future form in the app automatically pulls this data (auto-fill), so the user never needs to enter it again.

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Core Technology & Flow (How it works?)

In collaboration with the development team (Computer Science), we designed a smart engine that bridges the language gap:

The user: Speaks or selects answers in Arabic within the app.

The system: Uses an LLM (Large Language Model) to translate the information into formal Hebrew.

The output: The system generates an official Israeli government PDF document (for example, “Child Registration Request”), fully completed and ready for signature.

Flexibility: The user can review, edit, and change details at any time before final submission.

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Core Technology & Flow (How it works?)

In collaboration with the development team (Computer Science), we designed a smart engine that bridges the language gap:

The user: Speaks or selects answers in Arabic within the app.

The system: Uses an LLM (Large Language Model) to translate the information into formal Hebrew.

The output: The system generates an official Israeli government PDF document (for example, “Child Registration Request”), fully completed and ready for signature.

Flexibility: The user can review, edit, and change details at any time before final submission.

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