The Aliyah Process - All You Need to Know

For most people, this is the process you’ll need to take to claim citizenship, relocate, and settle into your new home in Israel.

Photo by Boris Izmaylov on Unsplash
Preparing for Aliyah
  1. Application
  2. Open your Aliyah file
  3. Set up an interview
  4. Get your Visa
  5. Book your flight to Israel

1 Submit your Application

You’ll submit an online application form to the Nefesh B’Nefesh organization.

*Relevant only if you’re making Aliyah from the USA or Canada.

2 Open your Aliyah file

Open your “Aliyah file” with the Jewish Agency. Your “Aliyah file” refers to all the forms and documents related to your Aliyah process.

3 Set up an Interview With the Jewish Agency

A “Shaliach” (emissary) or a local worker will interview you to determine your eligibility and Aliyah profile and to grant you a recommendation for an Aliyah visa to the Israeli consulate.

  • Where
    Contact the Jewish Agency office in your region
  • WHEN

    The Global Aliyah Center will schedule an interview with a “Shaliach” of the Jewish Agency

  • WHAT

    We’ve got them listed below. (Helpful tip: Make multiple copies of everything!):

    • The Questionnaire (will be filled with the “Shaliach”)
    • Original Birth Certificate – You should have a birth certificate for every family member, translated into Hebrew with an apostille signature.
    • Marital Certificates – Have your marriage license, and divorce or death certificate if applicable, with an apostille stamp.
    • Federal Certificate of Integrity – This should be from the country of origin, dated up to 3 months prior to Aliyah, translated into Hebrew or English and have an apostille signature.
    • Passport – Your current passport must be valid for at least 6 months.
    • Proof of Judaism – This is a letter from a community rabbi abroad, from a list of rabbis recognized by the Ministry of the Interior, testifying to your Judaism. Proof may include a certified and translated copy of your parents’ marriage or a Bar Mitzvah certificate, or a death certificate or burial certificate of parents or grandparents from a Jewish cemetery, documents showing membership in a synagogue or in a Jewish organization, or any other photos or evidence that can testify to your Jewishness.
    • Conversion Documents (*only if converted into Judaism) – You must bring an original conversion certificate from the court where the conversion procedure was carried out, and a letter from the rabbi of your community, detailing your conversion process.
    • 3 Passport Photos – You should have 3 official passport photos of each person making Aliyah, 35 x 45 mm in size.
    • Diplomas – Bring documents attesting to your education and your children’s school report cards.
    • Health Forms – Any documents that may testify to your mental and physical heath. (if needed/if applicable).
    • Order Appointing a Guardian – *This would be needed for minors, people with special needs, etc.

4 Get your Visa

Almost there! You’ll get a visa stamped into your passport based on your specific Aliyah profile.

  • WHERE

    At your local Jewish Agency office.

  • WHEN

    About 2 weeks before your Aliyah date.

  • WHAT

    Aliyah Visa in your passport.

5 Book Your Flight to Israel

Each approved family member will receive a free, one-way airline ticket to Israel, including baggage allowance.

Arriving in Israel
  1. Arriving in Israel

1 Arriving in Israel

  • WHERE

    At the Aliyah and Integration office at the airport

  • WHEN

    The day of Aliyah.

  • WHAT

    You will recieve the following:

    • Your Oleh Booklet – Also called a Teudat Oleh, this booklet is used to register for the aid assistance and benefits you’ll receive in Israel. Remember to bring it with you whenever you go to receive assistance and benefits from the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration, the bank, customs, social security, health insurance, and more. It’s your new best friend.
    • Your temporary Teudat Zehut card –  This allows you to apply for your official identity number at the Population and Immigration Authority. To receive the permanent Teudat Zehut, you must apply within 3 months at the Administration of Population and Immigration near your residence. You will be required to apply for a biometric ID. Keeping track of the time is vital, as holding an expired ID may prevent your access to certain services.
    • A form for opening your Israeli bank account – You will submit your banking information – This form is given to the bank where you choose to open an account and receive payments from the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration (Sal Klita). Where can you learn about the various Israeli banks? Check out your options here
    • Establish health insurance – You’ll register for the health insurance of your choice and get free coverage for 6 months. You can get registration over and done with even at the airport, or immediately afterwards at the post office branches. After 3 weeks, the registration can be done on the Bituach Leumi website. If you haven’t registered by 90 days after your Aliyah date, you can only do so at a local branch of the health insurance organization. Obviously, when it comes to medical coverage, it’s best to sign up early. The sooner, the better. What must you know about the various available health insurance organizations?  You can learn all about them here
    • Your Absorption Basket (Sal Klita) – Your welcome basket from the state of Israel contains financial assistance for the first year, as determined by the number and ages of people in your family. Your first payment will be given in cash at the airport (cha-ching!). Later payments will be transferred directly to your new Israeli bank account. Click here to learn more about how Absorption Basket works.
    • An Israeli SIM card – This will allow you to keep in touch with the “old country” and call your family and new friends in Israel.
    • Transportation to your new home – Zip to your new residence, drop your suitcase, and slip off your shoes. Welcome home!
Settling Into Israel
  1. Open a bank account
  2. Meet with an advisor from the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration
  3. Hebrew language Ulpan
  4. Health Insurance Premiums
  5. Employment assistance
  6. School Registration

1 Open a Bank Account

You’ll need to bring a few documents to get set up at the bank and branch of your choice.

Here is what you should bring:

  • Oleh Booklet
  • Temporary or Permanent Teudat Zehut Card
  • Form for Opening a Bank Account (*You received this form at the airport when you arrived)
  • Power of Attorney (*This is only required if you are opening a joint bank account and either you or your spouse cannot attend the meeting. Make sure to get it notarized beforehand. Moving forward, both of you should get to know your bank branch and the representatives who will help you manage your account
  • Permission from a Parent or Guardian (*This is only needed under the age of 16)

Note that it is not a good idea to change your bank account during your first years in Israel so you can continue receiving Oleh benefits from the same account. Any change must be updated with the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration.

  • WHEN

    As soon as possible, so you can recieve your Absorption Basket (Sal Klita) financial assistance.

2 Meet With an Advisor From the Ministry of Aliyah and Integration

An advisor at the nearest Ministry of Aliyah and Integration will have you verify personal details, set up financial aid, and receive guidance with things like:

  • Banking 
    At this meeting, you will update the Ministry with your bank account details so that payments from your Absorption Basket can be deposited directly to your account.
  • Financial Rent assistance
    Rental assistance for the first 7 months after arrival is deposited directly into your bank account as part of your Absorption Basket.
    Starting in the 8th month of Aliyah, through the end of your 5th year (and for Olim families headed by a single parent – until the end of your 6th year), rental assistance is provided by the Ministry of Construction and Housing (Misrad Hashikun), with the presentation of a lease.
    Note: Rental assistance is not provided if you live in an Absorption Center. But your Absorption Basket will not be affected during that time. As you near the end of your residence there, you must fill out and send a permit to leave the absorption center to get reduced taxes when you rent outside the absorption center.
    For more information about rental assistance for Olim, call *2310 (extension 5).
    Click here (Hebrew website) for a helpful chart of information.

3 Hebrew Language Ulpan

Every Oleh over 18 is entitled to 500 free hours of Hebrew language lessons in Ulpan.
This is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, and at the end of your Ulpan, you will receive a graduation certificate. Ulpans operate all year long, and the local classes open up based on the number of Olim applying at that time.

Click here to find out more about Learning Hebrew.

4 Health Insurance Premiums

You’ll be exempt from paying health insurance premiums 6 months from your date of Aliyah.
You can receive an additional 6 months’ exemption (12 months in total) if, during that time, you are unemployed or working just a few hours.
Depending on individual situations, additional exemptions may be available through Bituach Leumi – for example, for those who are elderly, disabled, on maternity leave, etc.

Find more information about health insurance here

You can also  find some helpful information here

5 Employment assistance

Much help is available with employment assistance, entrepreneurship, information on professional licensing processes, and the evaluation of academic degrees from abroad in the relevant government ministries.

Here, you can learn more about employment

6 School Registration

Registering your children at local schools is recommended. Those between 1st and 12th grade are entitled to unique individual and group Hebrew language instruction during school hours to assist them in acclimating.

Find out more about Kids’ Education here.

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